Belfast Planning Board Resists Cap on Recreational Cannabis Stores
Most members reject a limit sought by some councilors, even as one warns cash-rich shops could crowd out other downtown businesses.
Belfast's Planning Board is close to finishing proposed rules that would let recreational marijuana stores open in the city, the Bangor Daily News reported. Belfast now permits only medical marijuana dispensaries, about six of which operate there.
The City Council asked the board in the spring of 2025 to write regulations for adult-use cannabis businesses. Since January, the board and planning staff have held four workshops on where stores could go and whether to limit how many there are. The board hopes to hold a public hearing in early May.
No draft has been released, but Bub Fournier, the city's director of code and planning, said the board will likely propose allowing the shops anywhere retail is permitted. State law keeps recreational cannabis stores at least 1,000 feet from schools, a distance towns may shrink to 500 feet.
Some councilors want a limit on the number of stores. Most board members oppose one, saying the market will sort itself out. Board member Shannon Shimer, the only one to argue for a cap, said at a March 11 meeting that cash-heavy cannabis businesses might outspend other tenants and reshape downtown's mix of storefronts. Fournier said the board has not settled its position.
Maine voters legalized recreational marijuana in 2016, but towns must opt in to allow retail sales. The Maine Office of Cannabis Policy reported more than $246 million in recreational sales statewide during 2025.
This story was first reported by Bangor Daily News.
