LIVERMORE FALLS — An ordinance that governs medical marijuana establishments licensing has once again been revised, adding fees and operation hours among other changes.

The ordinance was approved by voters in November 2021 and will go before voters again in either April or June 2023. The revised proposal has been sent back to a town attorney for review.

Selectmen held a public hearing on the revision on Oct. 18. Chairman Jim Long proposed new fee amounts.

It doubles the initial $250 application fee to a $500 fee.

There is also a nonrefundable $500 annual license fees and costs, which is the same as it was, but will be applied to the initial license fee for the town.

The fees are proposed below:

• Medical marijuana retail store permit/license fee: $500;

• Medical marijuana product manufacturing facility permit/license fee: $1,250;

• Medical marijuana cultivation facility, indoors and outdoors:
-Tier one up to 30 mature plants or up to 500 square feet of plant cultivation area permit/license fee: $250;
-Tier two up to 501 to 2,000 square feet of plant cultivation area permit/license fee: $3,000;
-Tier three 2,001 to 7,000 square feet of plant cultivation area permit/license fee: $5,000;
-Tier four 7,001 to 30,000 square feet of plant cultivation area permit/license fee: $15,000.
-For each approved increase of 10,000 square feet, there is an additional fee of $5,000;

• Nursery cultivation area for cultivation of not more than 1,000 square feet of plant cultivation area in compliance with the law permit/license fee: $500. Plant cultivation area of individual nursery is permanently capped at 1,000 square feet.

Select board Chairman Jim Long said he looked at other towns’ ordinances to come up with a fee schedule for Livermore Falls. He asked Brandon Hobbs, code enforcement officer, to research and add language to determine if different fees should be added for medical marijuana manufacturing production for inherently hazardous substances if using manual processing and for those that do not have hazardous processes.

The revised ordinance also changes the hours of operation from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. to 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. It provides for three retail stores in the Village area. Currently there are six retail stores approved in the area and two cultivation facilities. No new retail stores will be permitted in that area if the ordinance is approved. Those currently existing are grandfathered. Under the revision, there would also be no more cultivation or product manufacturing facilities in the Village area.

There is no limit proposed on the number that can be approved outside the Village area for either retail, cultivation or product manufacturing. Also, added is that no medical marijuana establishment will be located at a distance of less than 500 feet of lot lines of pre-existing facilities licensed medical marijuana establishments.

Applicants for marijuana cultivation permits/licenses may not hold more than three such permits/licenses or a total combined plant cultivation of in excess of 30,000 square feet.

Selectmen voted 3-1 to accept the changes and send them to the town’s attorney for review. Selectman William Kenniston opposed the vote because he did not favor putting a cap on the number of facilities in town. Long said he went by density of population. The village is densely populated while outside of it is not.

The Village area is the area defined by the Jay town line on the north, the Androscoggin River on the west, the Central Maine Power Co. right-of-way on the east and on the south by an east-west line from the river to the power lines and encompassing all properties abutting Gilbert Street, the south loop.

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