The Alcohol and Marijuana Control Office will be conducting their board meetings on the Kenai Peninsula for the first time, this week. The Alcoholic Beverage Control Board will be meeting today. The Marijuana Control Board will be meeting Tuesday and Wednesday.
The boards meet regularly, but not often and the agendas are full. During the Alcoholic Beverage Control Board meeting, members of the public will have the opportunity to give public testimony regarding items that are not on the agenda. The board will hear considerations from a number of businesses, including many state breweries and restaurants.
Local up-and-coming restaurant Addie Camp Train Car Eatery and Wine Bar is on the docket for their new license application, as well.
At the Marijuana Control Board meeting, public testimony is available for issues not on the agenda. A discussion from the Department of Environmental Conservation on food safety and sanitation will be given at the beginning of the meeting. Director Erika McConnell will also brief the board and public on a resolution regarding the separation of personal-use and commercial marijuana. Following the director’s briefing, there will be an enforcement briefing where the supervisor will give a report, go over priorities and notices of violations issued.
When it comes to regulations, the Marijuana Control Board has several proposed projects. Projects drafted for board review include sample jars, handler permit renewal fees, inspection parameters and consideration in following the approved operating plan.
There are several regulations and projects that have received public comment and are subject to potential board actions including, out-of-state investment in testing facilities, the definition of residency, license conversion, ownership change without a license, license expiration for renewal, wholesale concentrates to retail license, expiration of public notice, all licensees to have handler permits, effective date of ownership change and extended video storage retention time.
The proposed video retention time has seen a backlash from locals in the marijuana industry, the Clarion reported earlier last month. Many industry members are against an extension of video retention time, for the reason of software space and the time it could potentially take to recover footage.
Several marijuana cultivation facilities, retail stores and marijuana product manufacturing facility licenses are on the agenda for board action. New license applications on the Kenai Peninsula include the Alaskan Farmacy, a limited marijuana cultivation facility in Sterling and Hardworking Hippies, a limited marijuana cultivation facility in Soldotna. There is a new retail store license application for Good Buds LLC for consideration in Seward. Permafrost Distributors in Sterling and Nikiski are also renewing their license application. The board will consider the license of Soldotna’s Fat Tops LLC, which has received an objection from their landlord, according to the board agenda.
A considerable amount of new licenses and licenses for board consideration are located in the Matanuska-Susitna Borough.
The meetings will take place at 145 Main Street Loop in Kenai. The Alcoholic Beverage Control Board will meet at 10 a.m. today. To call into the meeting, call 1-800-315-6338, access code 69173. The Marijuana Control Board will meet at 9 a.m., Tuesday and Wednesday. To call into the meeting, dial 1-800-315-6338, access code 69176.
