BRADFORD, Vt. — Voters will decide whether to allow cannabis sales in Bradford in a vote scheduled for September, with an information session planned for this week.
The Bradford Selectboard set the date of the vote at its most recent meeting in late June. The polls will be open 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. for the special election on Sept. 13.
Town Clerk Sonya McLam, who asked the board to set a special election for the cannabis question, said the single question ballot will be simple and quick to count, but doing it in conjunction with the primary election in August would have added a layer of difficulty to an already complicated election.
“It’s three ballots already for the primary,” McLam said. “They vote only on one ballot. Then, the cannabis ballot would have to go into a separate box to be hand counted.”
Plus, McLam said, she already has the primary ballot set and early voting has started, making it too late to add the cannabis question.
In advance of the special vote, the town will hold an informational session before its next Selectboard meeting on Thursday.
Sarah Wraight, a regional planner at the Two Rivers Ottauquechee Regional Commission, will lead an informational session on cannabis at 6 p.m., with the Selectboard meeting set for 6:30 p.m.
Selectboard meetings are held in person at Bradford Academy in Room 26, but are also available remotely with the link provided when the agenda comes out prior to the meeting.
Planning Commission Chairwoman Marcey Carver encouraged the Selectboard to hold the information session knowing there is strong interest in allowing retail sales of cannabis in Bradford.
Carver said a survey the Planning Commission conducted in March and April as part of rewriting the town plan included a question asking about retail cannabis and 86% of respondents said yes, they would support it.
“There is community interest in this,” Carver said, adding she didn’t know how big of an impact it might have but she pointed out Bradford does have retail businesses.
“We are a small retail hub,” Carver said. “We have a lot of restaurants, a grocery store, and an interstate exit.”
Selectboard Chairman Daniel Perry III, said he was staying neutral on the issue.
“It’s up to the voters to decide things,” Perry said.
McLam said voters would be able to request a mail-in ballot by contacting the town clerk’s office at (802) 222-4727, extension 200. Anybody not registered to vote could register anytime before the vote or the same day at the polling site, located at the Bradford Academy Building, 172 N. Main St.
If Bradford approves the measure, it will join Upper Valley towns of Hartford, Woodstock, Windsor, Randolph and Strafford in allowing retail cannabis sales. If Bradford rejects the measure, it would join Woodstock Village.