John Breunig (opinion): Should a cannabis dispensary be allowed to move next to a CT agency that serves small children?

By John Breunig, The Stamford Advocate

Let me write this so a 6-year-old could understand the meaning: Cannabis dispensaries should not be open for business near children.

The Stamford Planning Board somehow missed this in advancing AYR Wellness’s application to open at 417 Shippan Ave. It’s now up to the city Zoning Board to do the right thing. The application accurately notes that “The immediate area is characterized by a variety of commercial uses including a bank, funeral home, restaurants, catering center, self-storage facility as well as others.”

What it neglects to mention is that “others” includes an Americares clinic and Child Guidance Center therapy program.

And, oh yeah, there’s also what the application describes as “offices” on the second floor of the building where the dispensary would be situated.

As I enter Building One Community’s (B1C) second floor Thursday, the first sound I hear is of small voices chirping the text they’re reading as part of the Homework Club. The agency’s mission is to integrate immigrants into the community. In an America where battle lines and fantasy walls are drawn over immigration, this is a demonstration of how to make a better nation.