PLANNING BOARD RECOMMENDS MEDICAL MARIJUANA RULES, CHANGES TO ZONING

OXFORD - The Planning Board approved several zoning ordinance
amendments on mass gathering and medical marijuana on Wednesday.

The ordinance changes won't take effect unless Oxford residents vote
for the amendments at the town meeting, and the amendments are
considered recommendations to voters. The amendments were written by
an ordinance committee.

Zoning would change to allow buildings as tall as 65 feet in the
town's mixed-use zone, which follows Route 26. The current ordinance
allows buildings up to 35 feet tall, but Chammings said the town's
fire department was equipment to fight fires in taller buildings.

Chammings said the change was not related to the recently-approved
casino, and that Lampron's Energy had received a waiver to build
taller than 35 feet.

Most of the changes would be for medical marijuana. Chammings said
the ordinance was adopted from an ordinance Brewer passed recently.

Medical marijuana dispensaries and cultivation facilities would be
banned in areas less than 1,000 feet from schools, 500 feet from
churches, private residences or licensed daycare centers.

The amendment would also require surveillance cameras, burglar alarms
and a safe for overnight storage of the marijuana.

One mass gathering change would affect events with more than 10,000
attendees, and would require notifying people living within 500 feet
of the event. The other change would require notifying people who
live on roads that would be closed for an event.