WILTON — The Wilton Planning Board voted to approve a use permit application for a medical marijuana retail store on Thursday, Sept. 7, that is looking to open at 3 Bryant Road in Wilton. The application will move forward to the Wilton Board of Selectpersons for final approval.

Two public hearings were originally planned for the meeting. However, the public hearing for the conversion of Meadow Lanes bowling alley, listed at 885 US Route 2, into a private Christian school was called off due to a failed inspection.

Originally the location for Maineac Glassworks, the sale of the location was finalized several weeks ago according to current owner Frank Berenyi. Owner of Marijuanavillle in Waterville, Berenyi is looking to expand his business into Wilton. “We actually have a lot of Wilton people visit my store in Waterville,” Berenyi said.

The location will be Berenyi’s third medical marijuana retail store, following his shops in Waterville and Gardiner. Code Enforcement Officer Gary Judkins said his reputation with the Maine Office of Cannabis Policy is “extraordinary”.

The location will be strictly a retail space for medical marijuana, according to Berenyi. He currently has no plans for growth and cultivation at this location.

“We’re gutting out the basement right now,” Berenyi told the Planning Board, “There is no growth in the basement, even though it seems somebody had tried before.”

Berenyi told the Planning Board he intends to close off the basement and set up an alarm system that will be linked directly to Wilton Police Department and Fire and Rescue. He also stated that he hopes to add heat pumps once the building is operational.

When asked how many employees the location will have on hand, Berenyi stated at least two people and he intends to hire locally.

“My plan is to bring three or four people from [his shop in Waterville],” he said. “I have a couple of girls that work for me that basically know everything. Whenever I open a new store, I did this in Gardiner, I bring them to get it running and try to train people.”

Berenyi stated that he likes to hire locally and he compensates his employees very well. He anticipates he will not have much issue finding workers.

“We’re lucky, we pay very well, so we actually have the opposite [problem],” he said. “We got everybody applying, because everyone wants to work in dispensary.  It’s a cool thing, I guess.”

Berenyi has already begun work on the location, clearing out the inside, the basement and overgrowth on the outside. He also plans to remove several trees to make the location more visible and reduce the amount of coverage that may be utilized for potential burglary. “Someone will try to break in,” he said. “They always do. It’s inevitable.”

Berenyi stated that he will put crushed rock in the driveway for now. He hopes to revisit the subject of parking in the spring when he has a better idea of how busy the location will be once opened and operating.

“We’re really gonna see how it’s gonna go,” he said. “I mean, we could be crazy busy. I know we’re gonna be busy, it’s just the level of busy but with parking, it’s better to open up and see what happens.”

“It’s a great location,” he added. “We were outside cutting the grass and everybody’s honking their horns.”

Berenyi first made an appearance in Wilton when he had expressed interest in buying Meadow Lanes and converting half of the location into a medical marijuana retail store and keeping the other half as a bowling alley. According to Berenyi, the location of the shop on US Route 2 is a good spot with a high amount of traffic.

When asked by the Livermore Falls Advertiser if the recent drops in licensing fees for marijuana growth, cultivation and retail in the town of Wilton influenced his decision to open a new location in the town, Berenyi denied this.

“I didn’t even know about it,” Berenyi said. “Frankly, if you are concerned about licensing fees, you shouldn’t be getting into this business.”

A public hearing for the use permit application was held in June, with the response from the community leading to Berenyi walking away from the bowling alley. Berenyi shifted his focus to the shop on Bryant Road.

With the Planning Board’s approval, Berenyi’s next step will be the Wilton Board of Selectpersons. The next Select Board meeting will be on Tuesday, Sept. 19. However, Judkins stated that a minimum of two weeks is needed for the application to process, which means it will not go before the Select Board until Tuesday, Oct. 3.

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