The East Windsor Planning Board adopted a resolution on Monday allowing Fresh Dispensary to move forward with plans for a cannabis retail store near Wendy’s on Route 130, despite a petition from dozens of residents raising concerns about its location near a child care facility. The vote came after public comment that, in the end, did not change the outcome.
According to TAPinto, resident Olga Franco presented a petition signed by 43 residents during the meeting, which she said raised concerns about the meeting’s start time, how the agenda was posted and whether it was clear, and the store’s proximity to a child care facility. The seed facts place the planned store within 1,000 feet of that facility. Fresh Dispensary representative Erica Antonya Parlavecchio said she was unaware of the 1,000-foot distance Franco cited, per the same TAPinto report.
Township Says Notice Requirements Were Met
East Windsor Township fulfilled its requirements to post the agenda and notify residents near the planned cannabis store, the report states. Even so, some residents pushed back on how the process felt, including its timing. East Windsor resident Jessica Defalco criticized the argument for keeping the board’s longstanding 5 p.m. meeting start time and asked for a more reasonable schedule, the outlet reported.
Board attorney Larry Sachs said the 5 p.m. start time had been in effect for a very long time and noted that many towns hold their meetings at that hour, according to the same account. After the resolution passed, board members discussed meeting start times informally among themselves — one member said he preferred keeping the 5 p.m. slot, another suggested 5:30 p.m. would work better for him, and a third said finding a time acceptable to everyone seemed unlikely.
What Changed in Fresh Dispensary's Application
Fresh Dispensary revised its application to address concerns raised at a prior planning board meeting, the report notes. The updated plans include installation of an air filter or scrubber if cannabis odors are detected, a revised lighting plan intended for round-the-clock compliance, an Americans with Disabilities Act-compliant ramp, and a community benefits plan that will still require separate township approval.
Per the report, East Windsor Township Police Chief found the dispensary’s security plan satisfactory, a determination Mayor Janice S. Nironov cited. Fresh Dispensary did not announce an expected opening date for the East Windsor location at the meeting. The company has existing locations in Elizabeth and Eatontown, New Jersey, according to its company website.
Similar Disputes Have Played Out Elsewhere In New Jersey
East Windsor isn’t the only New Jersey community wrestling with where cannabis retailers should be allowed to operate. In Haddon Township, Brotherly Buds Haddon Township LLC proposed adaptively reusing an existing building at 408 Crescent Boulevard as a Class 5 cannabis retail sales facility, a plan the township’s Planning/Zoning Board was scheduled to review on May 7 at 7:30 p.m., according to 42freeway.com.
That same outlet reported that Haddon Township officials had already approved another dispensary project in Fall 2025 at the Route 130 and Nicholson Road intersection, after the township had previously approved two cannabis retail licenses for the area. Not every proposal has cleared that process, though — a separate dispensary plan at 400 Black Horse Pike was denied by Haddon Township the prior year, the outlet reported, underscoring how much these decisions can vary from one project to the next even within the same town.
