A 4th recreational pot store planned in Quincy, but it needs a special permit. Here's why

QUINCY − The developers planning a recreational marijuana store on Brook Road will ask the zoning board of appeals for a special permit Tuesday night.

Co-owners Maggie Suprey and Eleanor Winship told The Patriot Ledger they hope to open the women- and LGBTQ-owned Wildflower Cannabis at 159 Brook Road, a small lot in an industrial zone that currently holds construction equipment and vehicles, within a year.

"It's about providing valuable jobs but also a good community partnership with the city of Quincy," Winship said.

Suprey said, "We're feeling really optimistic to get before the board, to present what we’ve worked really hard for a really long time on."

Two cannabis stores already operate in the city: Quincy Cannabis Co. on Washington Street and the medical dispensary Panacea Wellness on Ricciuti Drive.

Two more recreational stores have come before the board since last summer. In August, a Braintree pharmacist received a special permit to open Pinnacle Cannabis at Water and Liberty streets, less than a quarter-mile from the Wildflower site. In December, the owner of a store in Cohasset got approval to open Chill and Bliss in a former Burger King at 503 Quincy Ave.

Why Wildflower Cannabis needs a special zoning permit

Because of restrictions on where cannabis stores can open, Wildflower needs a special permit from the zoning board.

Cannabis stores are required to be at least 1,500 feet from a residential district. Wildflower will ask the board to reduce the required distance to 375 feet.

In their application, Suprey and Winship say they would build a fence around three sides of the property, allowing access only through the parking lot and single entrance door.

They also asked permission to locate the store 175 feet from the Morrissette American Legion Post. The legal requirement is 500 feet under Massachusetts law. Suprey said they obtained post officials' blessing.

Owners are childhood friends who bonded over ice hockey

Suprey was born in Quincy and raised in South Boston. She and Winship grew up playing competitive ice hockey together. Both studied entrepreneurship at Brown University, where they played hockey and lacrosse.

"We had great parents who schlepped us from rink to rink," Winship said, recalling their childhood. "Our friendship goes pretty well back, being teammates over the years."

Suprey said she has strong ties to her native Quincy.

"I spend Christmas, Easter, Thanksgiving at my aunt and uncle's in Merrymount," she said. "That's why Quincy. We know it. We know the people. We want to bring a great business there."

Suprey said her older sister set a number of records while playing basketball for North Quincy High School.

Female empowerment in the cannabis industry

Winship emphasized the importance of the company's female leadership.

"We do feel in the cannabis industry that female representation and leadership is still a challenge," she said. "It's still maybe a third or less, depending on what market across the country."

But more than gender, values will define their business, Winship said, listing trust, honor and respect as the core virtues.

"That's how we look at this business," she said. "It's important for Quincy to hear that."

Education also plays a large role in Wildflower's mission. Winship said younger generations are beginning to look at alternative wellness approaches, in particular by steering clear of alcohol as a form of self-medication for physical and mental ailments. She said cannabis has a role in this movement.

Will Quincy collect marijuana impact fees?

Since recreational marijuana was legalized in 2016, many municipalities hosting cannabis stores charged businesses 3% of gross revenues to compensate for potential detrimental impacts arising from the business.

These "impact fees" became controversial when it became apparent that some municipalities collected fees without naming specific impacts or accounting for how the money was spent.

The state Cannabis Control Commission has new rules barring municipalities from charging a flat rate of 3%, instead requiring an itemized account of expenses incurred through the operation of each dispensary.

Quincy's agreement with Wildflower Cannabis states that the impact fee will "be reasonably related to the costs imposed upon the municipality ... and not mandate a certain percentage of gross sales as the community impact fee."

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This article originally appeared on The Patriot Ledger: Marijuana dispensary seeks special permit from Quincy zoning board