EATONTOWN – Municipal officials in Eatontown have approved the format of a license application that potential operators of a cannabis business will be required to complete if they want to operate in the borough.
On Oct. 27, members of the Borough Council passed a resolution approving the format of the license application. The application will have to be completed and filed by any cannabis entity seeking to operate at permitted locations in Eatontown.
Council members previously adopted an ordinance which established the locations where cannabis businesses will be permitted to operate and the standards by which a business operator may receive a license.
The council’s action followed the New Jersey Cannabis Regulatory, Enforcement Assistance, and Marketplace Modernization Act, which was approved by state legislators in February after New Jersey voters in 2020 approved a constitutional amendment to legalize marijuana.
The state legislation legalized the recreational use (also known as adult use) of marijuana for certain adults, subject to state regulation; it decriminalized the possession of small amounts of marijuana and hashish (a marijuana concentrate); and it removed marijuana as a Schedule I (high potential for abuse) drug.
The law established six marketplace classes of licensed marijuana businesses in New Jersey: cultivator, manufacturer, wholesaler, distributor, retailer and delivery.
Under the terms of Eatontown’s ordinance, cannabis cultivators, manufacturers, wholesalers and distributors will be permitted to operate on Industrial Way, west of Route 35. The maximum permitted number of each business type in Eatontown will be two.
Cannabis retailers will be permitted to operate on Route 36; and on Route 35, south of the intersection with Route 36.
The application fee for all five permitted cannabis business types will be $10,000. Each business that is approved to operate in the borough will be required to pay $2,500 annually to maintain the license, according to the ordinance.
Cannabis cultivators, manufacturers and retailers will be subject to a 2% local cannabis tax, while wholesalers will be subject to a 1% tax.
A marijuana delivery service will not be permitted to operate in any zone in Eatontown. However, the delivery of cannabis products and/or supplies to Eatontown addresses by a delivery service that is based outside the borough may not be prohibited by municipal officials.