Correction: An earlier version of this story said the state Alcoholic Beverage Control Division had determined a church headquarters near a proposed dispensary site on Highway 5 did not meet the definition of a church. The story has been corrected to reflect that the agency has not made a determination on that location.
A pair of Arkansas dispensaries will ask state regulators next month for permission to relocate to Benton and Brinkley in addition to another dispensary already planning to ask for approval to move to Jacksonville.
Good Day Farm Hensley, in south Pulaski County, is seeking approval from the state Medical Marijuana Commission for approval to move to 510 Highway 5 North in Benton. Greenlight of Helena-West Helena is seeking approval to move to 101 Industrial Drive in Brinkley and has the support of Brinkley Mayor Billy Hankins.
Greenlight Little Rock had already planned to ask commissioners for permission to move to a site in Jacksonville near the border with Cabot, a proposal that has divided leaders in the two cities.
The commission will consider the items at 3:30 p.m. on Aug. 20.
Good Day Farm Hensley is proposing to move to a site near Interstate 30 that is home to Lost Pizza Co. Benton. Commission records show the site is owned by Camarato Properties LLC and the Lost Pizza Co. website says the Benton location is owned by Chuck and Ashley Camarato.
Commission records include a land survey showing the site is more than 1,500 feet from the Apostolic Christian Center Church on I-30. Dispensaries must be at least 1,500 feet from churches, according to the state constitutional amendment voters passed in 2016 to legalize medical marijuana.
Google Maps also shows the proposed site is 371 feet from the state headquarters of the Church of God on Highway 5. Scott Hardin, spokesman for the state Alcoholic Beverage Control Division, said agency staff has not determined if the site meets the definition of a church. Hardin cited two court cases that help determine how the agency concludes if a site qualifies as a church, including a case from 1853 that says a church is a “place where a body of people or worshippers associate together for religious purposes.”
Last week, the commission approved a change of ownership at Good Day Farm Hensley in which the business established 94 owners through a deal that converted debt to equity in the business. Juliette Dobbs Allen is the largest shareholder with a 9% ownership stake.
Greenlight dispensary in Helena-West Helena will ask the commission for approval to move to 101 Industrial Drive in Brinkley. Hankins, the Brinkley mayor, submitted a letter of support to the commission, saying it would be a “great opportunity for economic growth.”
Last year, Greenlight Helena prepared to ask the commission for approval to move to Stuttgart but withdrew the request amid community opposition. The dispensary is owned by William “Griffin” Christine, John Mueller and Lance Gray.
The commission will also consider Greenlight Little Rock’s request to move from 7303 Kanis Road in Little Rock to 7418 T.P. White Drive, which has a Cabot address but lies within the city of Jacksonville after a 2011 annexation. Two state legislators from Cabot and the mayor of Sherwood have told the commission they oppose the move, while two other state legislators, the Jacksonville mayor and a Jacksonville bank executive have told the commission they support the move.