Connecticut residents protest against a cannabis plant near schools

Local news station WFSB reports that the facility, which will be built in New Britain, Connecticut, will be “close to five schools, some less than a mile away.”

Locals in New Britain are concerned about this proximity, citing the expected smell of the new cultivation centre.

“How are we supposed to explain to our kids who want to play outside what that smell is? How should the teachers [the schools] Explain to your students that the city cares more about revenue than their own health and wellbeing,” New Britain resident Shelley Vincenzo told the broadcaster.

“I’m not against marijuana, we know the pros and cons. I am opposed to having this type of facility in a community that is trying to thrive and is trying to build something better than marijuana,” said Franciso Santiago, also from New Britain, as quoted by WFSB.

But all of these objections are obviously moot, as “the proposal was still accepted with the amendment requiring developers to install and maintain an odor control abatement system approved by the Department of Health.”

The developer behind the project “says the city will be presented with an odor control plan,” according to the broadcaster.

Legal recreational cannabis sales began in Connecticut last month after the state’s Democratic Gov. Ned Lamont signed legislation ending the 2021 ban on cannabis. The Associated Press reported that state-approved “stores in Branford, Meriden, Montville, New Haven, Newington, Stamford and Willimantic were scheduled to open their doors to the general public on day one,” with two more pharmacies “in Danbury and Torrington” slated to open later become.

“That’s why I introduced legislation and worked hard with our partners in the legislature and other stakeholders to create a comprehensive framework for a safely regulated market that prioritizes public health, public safety, social justice and equity.” It will help eliminate the dangerous unregulated market and support a new, growing sector of our economy that will create jobs,” Lamont said in a statement at the time the bill was signed. “By allowing adult possession of cannabis, regulating its sale and content, training law enforcement officers in the latest techniques to detect and prevent disruptive driving, and erasing the criminal records of individuals with certain cannabis crimes, we are not only effectively modernizing our laws and addressing injustices , we keep Connecticut economically competitive with our neighboring states.”

On the day that legal sales began in Connecticut last month, Lamont said it “represents a turning point in the injustices caused by the War on Drugs, especially now that there is a legal alternative to the dangerous, unregulated.” Underground cannabis market announces sale.”

The new law not only laid the groundwork for a regulated retail cannabis market, but also spurred thousands of Connecticut adults to have their records wiped.

Lamont announced in December that about 44,000 people would have their low-level marijuana convictions overturned in the new year.

“On January 1, thousands of people in Connecticut will be automatically expunged for low-level cannabis convictions under the cannabis legalization law we enacted last year,” Lamont said. “Especially as Connecticut employers are trying to fill hundreds of thousands of open positions, a previous low-level cannabis possession conviction should not deter anyone from pursuing their career, housing, work and educational goals.”