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The Real Question

There have been many cogent letters to the editor, recently, outlining the negative aspects of marijuana use.

The point is moot, however. Marijuana is now legal in the state of Connecticut and dispensaries are going to open in other nearby towns, if not in Clinton. A medical marijuana dispensary already exists in Branford and will probably start dispensing non-medical marijuana when the time arrives.

The actual conversation should be regarding the impact on Clinton of a local dispensary. Three percent of all marijuana sales go to the town. Depending on volume, an estimate of revenues to the town would be in the neighborhood of $500,000 a year [based on annual sales of $16.6 million]. It could probably be much higher.

So the real question is: Are we willing to have a dispensary open in Clinton, and if so what kind of regulations do we need to enact in order to make sure it has a conservative impact on our daily commerce? Or should we turn our backs on this potential source of revenue and abandon it to another town?

David Burns

Clinton