Islip Town officials table vote to allow retail cannabis sales

Islip Town officials on Tuesday tabled a vote that could have legalized cannabis dispensaries, meaning the town's ban of marijuana sales will remain in effect for the foreseeable future.

Republican Town Councilman Michael McElwee, who proposed tabling the vote Tuesday, cited overwhelming opposition among residents as well as a need to focus efforts on combating illegal cannabis shops operating in Islip.

“We’ve ... heard a clear and overwhelming response from residents who do not support opting in to legal sales at this time,” McElwee wrote in a statement Tuesday. “That being said, I do believe there may come a time when a well-regulated, legal cannabis industry can be explored — one that generates much-needed tax revenue.”

Town officials did not set a future date to consider a policy change. They had begun considering a repeal of the town's 4-year-old ban on marijuana sales in March. In 2021, then-Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo signed a bill legalizing recreational marijuana in the state.

If the board had put legalization to a vote Tuesday, a simple majority of "yes" votes would have enabled Islip to become the fifth Suffolk County town to allow retail cannabis. Brookhaven, Babylon, Riverhead and Southampton all have opted in to dispensaries. Towns in Nassau County have not allowed retail cannabis sales.

The vote to table Tuesday was 4-1, with Councilman James O'Connor opposing it after he urged board members to make their positions known.

"My colleagues have short memories," O'Connor texted Newsday on Tuesday. "They are going to need plenty of gummies to get them through budget season. We know now, after hearing the issue for four months, that they can order their gummies from the dispensaries in Babylon, get them delivered here in Islip, and Babylon keeps all the tax revenue generated from the transaction.”

Newsday has reported Babylon raked in about $2.6 million from retail cannabis last year alone, according to data from the Suffolk County Comptroller's Office.

Islip Conservative Councilman John Lorenzo, who spearheaded the legalization push, has cited the amount of revenue neighboring towns are generating from the industry. 

McElwee and Democrat Jorge Guadron also have supported retail cannabis throughout the year. In addition to new revenue, they argue, legalization could benefit public health by helping to ensure product quality through increased regulation.

Since March, when officials first considered the repeal, supporters and opponents have locked horns over the plan’s merits. That month, Supervisor Angie Carpenter was the only member of Islip’s five-member town board to oppose revisiting the policy. She has argued legalization can’t be undone and would “jeopardize the health and welfare of our youth.”

Other prominent opponents, such as the Bay Shore Chamber of Commerce, have echoed that sentiment.

The town board was poised to decide the cannabis question in April but delayed the vote until this month after scores of residents and activists showed up to speak about the proposal at the board’s April 8 meeting.

O’Connor, who proposed that delay in April, said it would allow residents more time to review the proposal. Speakers at that time had expressed concerns about things like dispensaries cropping up in nonindustrial areas, which is prohibited by the proposed policy.

O'Connor said Tuesday that gap in understanding had not been remedied.

 "There was legislation behind this. It wasn't just about opting in. There was proposed legislation that nobody took the time to read," he said. "That's a little disheartening."

By Sam Kmack

sam.kmack@newsday.com

Sam Kmack covers the Town of Islip for Newsday. He is a graduate of the University of Southern California and previously worked as a city watchdog reporter in the Phoenix metro area, as well as an investigative journalist at the Arizona Center for Investigative Reporting.