Get local news delivered to your inbox!
Attorney Lou Magazzu, representing cannabis business application Tambre LLC, tries to critique a recommendation to reject his clients’ proposal for a cannabis dispensary at the former Los Amigos restaurant Tuesday.
Rae Gartino said she and her partners invested $1.9 million into plans for a cannabis business in Atlantic City, including buying a building. The Casino Reinvestment Development Authority rejected site plan approval for the business, the first cannabis application rejected since legalization.
Los Amigos Mexican restaurant, shown in 2018, opened in 1979 on Atlantic Avenue in Atlantic City. Its current owners are trying to turn it into a cannabis dispensary.
ATLANTIC CITY — It took a while, but the board of the Casino Reinvestment Development Authority just said no to a cannabis plan for the first time, voting Tuesday to deny an application for a dispensary at the former Los Amigos restaurant at 1926 Atlantic Ave.
The rejection of the Tambre LLC plan for a dispensary came shortly after the approval of a site plan for Bud City LLC for a dispensary at 2311 Atlantic Ave. at the same meeting, and after 25 previous approvals of cannabis uses in the city since legalization.
In this case, CRDA Planning and Development Director Lance Landgraf cited concerns about a planned loading zone at the site.
Most of the traffic in the city comes through the area, and many pedestrians use the neighborhood.
Landgraf said he was concerned about the safety of the plan, which would require the driver to back up into traffic after the delivery.
“It was the fact that they were creating an unsafe maneuver in a public right-of-way,” Landgraf gave as his reason for recommending the site plan be rejected.
He told the board he would be unable to devise a better option if he were representing the applicant. There were other issues with the building that would require variances, Landgraf said, but he said those were not a significant concern.
This is the first time Landgraf has recommended a cannabis business proposal be rejected.
Atlantic City’s move to become the cannabis capitol of the east continues, with sites for two new dispensaries approved at the most recent meeting of the Casino Reinvestment Development Authority.
It also is the first time AtlantiCare has opposed one of the applications. Once the home to one of the city’s most popular restaurants, the site is in the shadow of AtlantiCare Regional Medical Center’s City Campus. It also is close to the Atlantic City bus station and to Tanger Outlets The Walk.
Landgraf told the board that Tanger Outlet had allowed Los Amigos to use a private alley off Michigan Avenue to load but would not extend the right-of-way for a cannabis business.
Lou Magazzu, an attorney representing Tambre LLC, sought to address the board before the vote, leading to an argument over what would be permissible.
Nick Talvacchia, an attorney who represented AtlantiCare, said applicants could not add to the established record after a proposal had been heard.
Sharon Dickerson, the general counsel for the CRDA, supported that perspective.
The CRDA acts as the planning authority in the city’s Tourism District. The planning professionals, including Langraf, review plans, take comments from neighbors and testimony from applicants in separate hearings, and then make a recommendation to the full board.
That recommendation is typically accepted, even if there are sometimes a few votes against among the board members.
“To my knowledge, the hearing officer has never been reversed, so I kind of feel like I’m going against the pope here,” Magazzu said.
Gathering for a meeting for the first time in about 3½ years, the Casino Reinvestment Development Authority board decided to table what looked likely to be its most controversial decision for the day Tuesday.
Talvacchia interrupted Magazzu’s presentation. He argued that if the board were to accept comments from Magazzu, it would allow for any applicant to attempt to add to the record after the application had been heard.
“We have to shut this down. This is in gross violation of CRDA practice for 12 years,” Talvacchia said. “It violates the rules. It’s improper.”
Neighbors had not been notified that new testimony would be heard, he said, and future applicants who disagree with Landgraf’s recommendation would try to take their case to the board if Magazzu were allowed to speak, Talvacchia said.
Magazzu did his best anyway, plowing ahead with his critique of Landgraf’s recommendation even as CRDA Board Chairman Modia Butler sought to interrupt him.
Magazzu said it was “arbitrary and capricious” for the board not to allow a critique of the report.
Butler had said he offered Magazzu a chance to comment, but then added that the applicants had a chance to present their case.
Dickerson said the option for arguing the matter further is to appeal the board’s decision.
After the vote, Magazzu said he would speak with his client about a potential appeal. But he maintained that the recommendation Landgraf prepared and his summary of the application were incomplete.
ATLANTIC CITY — Citing the effects of high inflation and a difficult labor market, Los Amigo…
He said no facts were misrepresented but that the board was not given sufficient context. He asked board members to read the transcripts of the planning meetings before voting, which did not take place.
The board did accept comments from one of the principals of Tambre LLC, Rae Gartino, whose name is listed as Sherry Gartino on the application.
She said the business is her livelihood and asked the board to reconsider. She said she and her partners came to Atlantic City because they believed Mayor Marty Small Sr.’s vision of the city as a cannabis hub for the Northeast.
“We wanted to be here. We wanted to bring life back to the community,” Gartino said. “We followed every rule to a T, and unfortunately after spending $1.9 million and buying a building that had a loading zone, we’re kind of stuck here.”
After the meeting, Magazzu said there is no rule requiring a loading zone. The building is in the city’s Green Zone, where cannabis sales are an approved use.
Small, who also serves as a CRDA board member, was the only vote in favor of the application.
“Everybody’s going to leave me by myself?” he asked after the vote.
Small said he has no personal experience with marijuana but said the newly legal industry will bring new revenue, new jobs and new investment to the city. That includes renovation of otherwise vacant buildings.
A dispensary and consumption lounge are nearing completion in the Claridge Hotel. But with millions of dollars on the table in Atlantic City, the principal says the city’s process has been a drag.
“Eventually it’s going to be a major revenue generator for the city,” Small said. “As mayor, I wholeheartedly support this application.”
Butler suggested it was not accurate to portray the CRDA as blocking the cannabis industry in Atlantic City.
“We’ve approved everything,” he said, adding there have been some debates, and some members have voted against proposals. “This is the first one where there is a recommendation not to move forward, I think for a very specific reason.”
So far, there are three dispensaries open in Atlantic City serving the recreational market, and another planning to open in the Claridge Hotel next month. In addition to planning approval and support from the local government, cannabis businesses require the approval of a license from the New Jersey Cannabis Regulatory Commission.
Contact Bill Barlow:
609-272-7290
bbarlow@pressofac.com
Twitter @jerseynews_bill
Get local news delivered to your inbox!
{{description}}
Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items.
Check out the latest stories from The Press of Atlantic City, in case you missed them.
Sign up for a digital subscription to The Press of Atlantic City now and take advantage of a great offer.
Keep it Clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Don’t Threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be Truthful. Don’t knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be Nice. No racism, sexism or any sort of -ism that is degrading to another person.
Be Proactive. Use the ‘Report’ link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
Share with Us. We’d love to hear eyewitness accounts, the history behind an article.
PLEASE BE ADVISED: Soon we will no longer integrate with Facebook for story comments. The commenting option is not going away, however, readers will need to register for a FREE site account to continue sharing their thoughts and feedback on stories. If you already have an account (i.e. current subscribers, posting in obituary guestbooks, for submitting community events), you may use that login, otherwise, you will be prompted to create a new account.
Attorney Lou Magazzu, representing cannabis business application Tambre LLC, tries to critique a recommendation to reject his clients’ proposal for a cannabis dispensary at the former Los Amigos restaurant Tuesday.
Rae Gartino said she and her partners invested $1.9 million into plans for a cannabis business in Atlantic City, including buying a building. The Casino Reinvestment Development Authority rejected site plan approval for the business, the first cannabis application rejected since legalization.
Los Amigos Mexican restaurant, shown in 2018, opened in 1979 on Atlantic Avenue in Atlantic City. Its current owners are trying to turn it into a cannabis dispensary.
Get up-to-the-minute news sent straight to your device.