If Cannabis Control Commission approves, facility would be on Fcaunce Corner Road

DARTMOUTH — As SouthCoast businesses await the reopening of the state’s economy, the Town of Dartmouth is thinking green.

The Select Board has voted unanimously to approve a community host agreement with Apotho Therapeutics, of Plainville, to open an adult-use, recreational marijuana dispensary at 479 Faunce Corner Road.

With the town’s approval, Apotho must complete the next hurdle of being granted a license by the Cannabis Control Commission, the state’s operating body for medical and recreational marijuana.

In a virtual meeting via Zoom on Monday, selectmen met with Apotho President and Secretary Matthew Medeiros, who laid out the company’s plans and answered questions covering everything from the pot shop’s security to possible delivery services.

“Apotho Therapeutics would like to open a recreational dispensary in the Town of Dartmouth on 479 Faunce Corner Road. We aim to ensure a very high exalted experience for the Town of Dartmouth, for the community we plan on opening in and the customers that will be locally around the Dartmouth area,” said Medeiros, before explaining that though it may be his first venture, that he and his business partners have been observing other dispensaries in Massachusetts and abroad in how security, cultivation and overall operations are conducted.

“For the past two years me and my partners have been going to various conferences and other entities as well to see their operations, in terms to see how they handle their security, their staff and their overall compliance with the CCC and other organizations in other states. We have seen multiple cultivators and retailers in this state, as well as in states like California and Nevada.”

He adds that an experienced management consultant has also been hired to address Apotho’s overall operations.

When pressed by Select Board Vice-Chairman Frank Gracie on possible delivery services, Medeiros explained that as a retailer and non-social equity and economic empowerment member, Apotho cannot partake in the main management of a delivery service.

“We would have to contractually have a delivery service as well,” he explained.

“For instance, say if we were to sell a product to a delivery service, specifically by CCC guidelines there has to be a bodycam on those individuals as well as two-way communication between the dispensary and the overall delivery, as well as having overall scanners and ID identification for people they are delivering to. That’s what the current regulations are today.”

Town Administrator Shawn MacInnes explained that per state law, the town would have to make a separate host community agreement with the delivery service.

The company also forecasts an economic boost of over $500,000 annually for the town, as well as a plan to fill half the store’s workforce with Dartmouth residents.

Apotho upper-management includes Treasurer Stephen Lima, a CPA/MST with over 40-years-experience in financial management of public accounting firms and privately held companies; General Manager Ronald Case, who has worked for decades with incarcerated and at-risk adults and youths, as well as assisting special investigations and narcotics tracking teams; and Director of Security Nancy Sheldon, who has had years of experience in security and asset protection in the retail industry as well as public safety. Sheldon currently serves as Manager of Asset Protection at three Macy’s stores in Massachusetts and Rhode Island, having further experience as a Special Police Officer for the Seekonk Police Department.

Now waiting on the Cannabis Control Commission to grant Apotho a license, Medeiros predicts the dispensary could be up and running by February, 2021, saying a soft-opening could be in the works before a grand opening.

Medeiros also detailed the products the company plans to feature in its 5,000 square foot dispensary, including the traditional flower product, marijuana concentrates, pre-rolled joints, and edibles. He says customers will have access to 35 parking spaces and 14 cash registers inside the facility.