Category: Burlington Buzz

  • Election 2025: Should Burlington Lift the Ban on Recreational Cannabis Sales?

    As Burlington residents prepare to vote next month in a non-binding referendum on lifting the town’s ban on marijuana shops, people here are divided on the question, though many do not seem to care one way or the other. 

    When Massachusetts voted to legalize recreational marijuana in 2016, the state allowed towns that voted against legalization to decide whether they want to have recreational dispensaries. Burlington’s Town Meeting enacted a ban on these shops in 2017.

    But that could change.

    The Select Board voted 3-1, with one abstention, on January 27 to put the issue on the April 5 town-wide ballot as a non-binding referendum. The vote is solely aimed at determining if Burlington residents have changed their opinions over the past eight years; a Town Meeting vote would be required to lift the ban.

    Michael Espejo, a Burlington Select Board member, said at the January 27 meeting that the Select Board has “gotten a lot of negative feedback through email” about removing the ban.  

    “But everyone I’ve talked to, if you talk to someone one to one or you reach out to someone,” Espejo said, “It seems like people are either in favor of marijuana sales in town or they’re ambivalent.”

    While most residents Burlington Buzz spoke with about the issue said they don’t use marijuana or don’t have an opinion, a few did voice their thoughts.

    Saty Pattnaik, who works in the financial department of a biopharmaceutical company, said he is against lifting the ban because it will make it too easy for people to obtain marijuana. “It just intoxicates your brain, your mind, and your body, and it causes a lot of health issues as well if you overdo it,” Pattnaik said. 

    Ann Rose, a registered nurse, said she favors lifting the ban because people go to other towns to get their marijuana, depriving Burlington of tax revenue. Municipalities can impose a tax of up to 3% of adult-use marijuana retail sales.

    Rose said she voted against the ban in 2017 and does not think there would be much pushback if Burlington decides to have recreational marijuana shops. “[Marijuana shops] are everywhere,” Rose said. “You see signs all over the highway for them, like Melrose has them, Gloucester has them, Woburn has them.” 

    Ariel Diaz, who runs a convenience store, said he opposes the ban because he wants marijuana sales to be more convenient. He said it would be good for the community and Burlington could generate more money. “Burlington has a bunch of stupid rules,” Diaz said. “They need to lift some of these things.”

    Betsey Hughes, who is a Town Meeting member, said having recreational marijuana shops would not be good for Burlington. 

    “The economic benefits are overhyped and uncertain. The economic and social costs are ignored and shouldn’t be,” Hughes said. “Having pot shops in Burlington is not an unavoidable outcome.”

    Hughes said she received quite a few emails from residents who rent apartments in her precinct who voiced opposition to lifting the ban. The town already voted on the issue, they said according to Hughes. Additional reasons they mentioned: That there are risks associated with marijuana; Burlington’s reputation for good neighborhoods might be called into question; and there are plenty of pot shops nearby. 

    “If somebody wants it, they can get it without compromising our family-oriented culture here in town,” Hughes said.

    Burlington is one of over 120 towns in Massachusetts that do not permit retail marijuana, including the nearby towns of Bedford and Lexington. Over 180 towns allow the marijuana shops, including Billerica and Woburn.

    In her experience as a human resource executive, Hughes has dealt with substance abuse issues. She says some CEOs and human resource officers are concerned about having marijuana stores within walking distance of workplaces where people can go out for lunch and consume gummies. 

    “It’s not like alcohol where you can smell it,” Hughes said. “It’s invisible on the surface, but it definitely affects performance.”

    Burlington resident Will Seagaard, who owns the Fresh Connection marijuana cultivation facility in Fitchburg, spearheaded the initiative to revisit the ban and add zoning for recreational cannabis.

    Seagaard said he favors lifting the ban for the tax revenue and because it provides a controlled environment for selling marijuana. Marijuana is being sold, whether illegally or in nearby towns, so Burlington might as well get the financial gain, said Seagaard. 

    “It was approved at the state level, and we’re not changing that,” he said. “What we can change is how it’s done in our community and what kind of safeguards we can put up. Saying we’re not going to ‘allow’ it doesn’t change the fact that it’s here.”

    James Hanafin, a Burlington detective sergeant, said he would rather not have recreational marijuana shops in the town but is not strongly opposed to them. Many of the people the police deal with who have mental health issues are marijuana users, he said. 

    A lot of people are concerned about bringing “riffraff” into town, Hanafin said, but there are already so many people coming from out of town to shop or stay in hotels here that he does not think it will make much of a difference.

    While some Burlington police officers are strongly against marijuana, Hanafin said, he has not heard much from residents.

    Burlington residents the Buzz talked to didn’t generally have strong opinions about the issue.

    “It’s not something you’re going to go out and wave the flag about, like, ‘Hey, let’s sell marijuana here,’” Espejo said. “It’s either, ‘It doesn’t really affect me,’ or you’re strongly against it and that would enable or motivate someone to write a letter to the Select Board or to their Town Meeting member.”

    Voters have the opportunity to vote during this year’s town election on whether or not they support lifting the ban. Mail-in voting has begun, early in-person voting runs from March 19 through April 3, and Election Day is Saturday, April 5, at Burlington High School.

    What do you think? Voice your choice with TownVote, powered by our civic partner, VoteLight. You can also ask questions and state your opinions using this platform.

    This non-binding referendum is one of two questions on the local election ballot. The second question will be whether or not the Town Clerk role should be converted from elected to appointed. Check out our story for information on the pros and cons of each.

    This story is part of a partnership between Burlington Buzz and the Boston University Department of Journalism.

  • Local-Made Crafting and Gifts Have a New Home

    The business that went from a Facebook page to a store where dozens of Burlington vendors sell their handmade crafts has moved from the Wayside Shopping Center to a spot on Middlesex Turnpike.

    Made in Burlington started on Facebook in 2020, when craft fairs were suspended because of the coronavirus pandemic, said Laurena Smith, the shop’s founder and owner. A year later the Facebook page became a pop-up craft shop in the Wayside Shopping Center that was intended to last two months but is still running three years later.

    “We had so many customers that kept saying, ‘This place is great. You can’t leave. You can’t close,’” Smith said. She kept extending the lease as people kept coming to the shop. The latest contract ended in January, and the Wayside Shopping Center had another business interested in moving into the space.

    Smith found a new spot in the Burlington Square Plaza at 101 Middlesex Turnpike, an area long-time Burlington residents will recognize as “where Tower Records used to be.” The shop relocated quickly and began operations there on February 2. Vendors say they are optimistic that the new location on a busy road will help them sell even more products.

    “I like to say that by supporting my small business you’re supporting 80 other small businesses,” said Smith, who hosts crafts from over 80 artisans from Burlington and surrounding areas in the shop. The sellers pay rent and a sales fee, but most of the profits go to the crafters, who set their own prices.

    The shop hosts weekly workshops and classes where people can learn how to make crafts such as baskets, jewelry and resin art. The classes, taught by vendors, are mostly adult classes, but they have classes for children as well, Smith said.

    The sense of community in the shop inspired Smith to create an entire craft section in the back of the new store that will be set up at all times so people can just come in to do crafts. The area will have tables set up and crafts on the shelves, ranging from a couple of dollars to $20, so people can pick out what they want to do, sit down, and do the craft for an hour or two for a $5 fee, said Smith. “We’re kind of rebranding as a handmade gift shop and DIY studio, so people can be creative whenever they want.”

    One of the vendors, Jessica Perry, said while she loved the old location, she thinks the new location is great because it is a busy area with hopefully just as much foot traffic. 

    Perry owns The Warped Loom, a fiber arts business that sells woven products like scarves, linens, and needle-felted pictures. A Billerica resident, Perry has been a vendor at Made in Burlington for a year and a half.

    In addition to being a vendor, Perry said she is also a frequent shopper and has gone to a crafting workshop with her 7-year-old daughter where they made their own button pins.

    Perry said she loves the community of customers and artists. 

    “A lot of artists are very kind people, and the ones that I’ve met would share information on shows, fairs and festivals that are coming up and things like that,” Perry said.

    Marieta Mirchev, owner of Purity Ave Candles, which sells all-natural soy candles, said she hopes the new location will bring more customers because it is more visible from the road and closer to the Burlington Mall. 

    Mirchev has lived in Burlington for eight years and has been with the store since it opened. She said she teaches candle-making workshops every few months at the store, getting an average of 10 people per workshop.

    “I like [Made In Burlington] not only as someone who sells there but also as a person from Burlington who has a family, knowing we can go there for the kids,” Mirchev said.

    Mirchev said she prefers to buy gifts from vendors at Made in Burlington rather than from the Burlington Mall.

    “We have a sign behind the desk that says, ‘When you buy handmade, an actual person does a happy dance,’ and it’s so true,” Smith said.

    The refreshed and reimagined Made in Burlington store is now open at 101 Middlesex Turnpike, on the corner of Mall Road and Middlesex Turnpike.

    This story is part of a partnership between Burlington Buzz and the Boston University Department of Journalism.