Voters in Simsbury have rejected a question on the ballot asking residents if they think retail cannabis locations should be allowed in town.
The ballot question read “Shall the sale of recreational marijuana be allowed in the Town of Simsbury?” That question was rejected by a vote of 3,379 to 2,817 on Election Day.
“I was very pleased, this is a wonderful, wonderful town and we like to keep it exactly as is with some modernized changes but that is not the change we wanted,” Janet Sopelak said.
She, along with other residents, were glad to hear the question was rejected by voters.
“I’m fine with it, I wasn’t really for it, there are plenty of places to get it and there is plenty of traffic and we don’t need any more traffic of people coming in for that,” Brian Carney said.
Others remained more neutral on the subject, like Mary Gridley, who personally didn’t answer the question.
“I was very neutral on it so I didn’t check either box because I don’t know much about it,” Gridley said.
Other neutral parties understood why the issue was so split in the town. David Mellen said he still hasn’t decided where he stands on it.
“I think we could have used the tax revenue boost, but I understand other peoples concerns,” Mellen said. “It’s not like there is not enough access in other towns, I do think money is going to other towns that we could use.”
And others were disappointed to hear about the referendum’s failing, saying it’s a missed opportunity for Simsbury.
“I voted for it, I wanted it to be sold here, I thought it could bring a lot of money to the town,” Evan Cole said.
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