By Michael Coughlin Jr.
Last month, during its voting hearing, the Boston Cannabis Board (BCB) rejected a proposed dispensary at 1576 Tremont St. called Soni DOT without prejudice, meaning the applicant can apply again at the same location.
The planned dispensary, spearheaded by Aditya Soni, has raised some concerns around the neighborhood — especially with the Community Alliance of Mission Hill (CAMH).
At the civic group’s monthly meeting in May, the proposal was vehemently opposed by a vote of 18-2, with one voter abstaining. The May vote followed an April meeting in which attendees of the CAMH meeting voiced frustration and a lack of trust in ownership stemming from the operation of the previous business at the site, Punjab Mini Mart, which was owned by Soni’s father, Rakesh.
Notably, an October 2023 report from WCVB revealing that Punjab Mini Mart failed a second health inspection in a week included a link to inspection records on the city’s website showing that the establishment had its permit to operate temporarily suspended multiple times between 2022 and 2023.
Additionally, inspection reports from the abovementioned link mention rodent issues, displaying expired products, and more.
Further, community members raised concerns about the ability of ownership to be a good neighbor and that other properties owned by Soni’s father had violations.
It should be noted that during the May CAMH meeting, Soni stated he would be the manager of the LLC that proposed to run the dispensary. His parents would have a financial interest in the business but would only be involved in “significant corporate transactions.”
Even with some of these concerns, Soni DOT did claim to have its supporters. According to the presentation given during the BCB’s transactional hearing, which preceded the voting hearing, Soni noted receiving 17 personal letters and 543 signatures from direct abutters, community members, and local businesses supporting the dispensary.
It should also be noted that several people provided public testimony in support of the proposal during the transactional hearing.
However, with that all being said, BCB Commissioners could not get behind the proposal. Chairwoman Kathleen Joyce noted that the proposal’s diversity and inclusion plan was generic and emphasized there was a buffer zone conflict with another establishment.
Missing details from the employment plan and strong opposition, which Joyce said was vocal, headlined her comments on the proposal as it was presented.
Commissioner Lisa Holmes echoed Joyce, saying, “This proposal scored very low, in my opinion.”
“Usually, we always have some local pushback sometimes when dispensaries want to open in areas, but the amount of discord against this establishment stood out,” she added.
Commissioner John Smith agreed and mentioned that he thought there were a lot of unaddressed community concerns.
“So, for me, I agree with my fellow commissioners that this did not seem like a very strong application,” he said.
While Commissioners Gabriel Camacho and Ramon Soto both had reservations about the proposal, they offered some encouraging words.
“I really do think it’s important to have diversity within the cannabis industry and within cannabis entrepreneurs. I think it was strong [that] you have a lot of support from the South Asian community, and I would encourage you to build that,” said Camacho.
Soto thought that in the week leading up to the voting hearing, some progress had been made regarding issues, such as a lack of detail.
“In the face of public, really, reasonable criticism, they’ve responded, which I think is great,” said Soto.
“I think some of the actions that they’ve taken foster confidence and progress, but I think that has to get built upon and included into a more comprehensive and considerate approach to running this business in a community that has a lot of concerns,” he added.
Before making a motion, Joyce again provided comments, saying the BCB had received a lot of supplemental material after the transactional hearing to the point that she compared it to a brand-new application.
“Should the applicant want to come back and present that to the community again and then to us, I would be open to a brand new application from them,” said Joyce.
Ultimately, there could be another application for Soni DOT in the near future, as the BCB unanimously approved a motion to reject the proposal, as mentioned, with the ability to apply again.