Board rejects second cannabis shop on Mission Hill

The Zoning Board of Appeal today rejected a proposal for a cannabis shop at 1441 Tremont St., citing its proximity to the Tobin Community Center and another proposed marijuana mart on Terrace Street.

Jody Mendoza's Team Green had previously won approval from the Boston Cannabis Board for a 1,000-square-foot shop, but the zoning board cited its location within 500 feet of the entrance of the community center, and less than a half mile from former state Rep. Jeff Sanchez's previously approved store on Terrace Street.

The half-mile buffer zone continues to perplex board members, because the cannabis board keeps approving shops closer to each other than called for under the buffer set by the City Council.

"This whole issue of buffer zones continues to drive me nuts," board member Mark Erlich said.

Team Green argued that the buffer zone concept was intended to prevent "clustering" of cannabis concerns and that the stretch from Tremont to Terrace is not just a seven- to eight-minute walk, but passes various industrial and commercial lots that nobody would mistake for a "cluster." Also, Mission Hill, with roughly 24,000 people in one square mile, is far denser than most parts of Boston and so could easily support two shops.

Also at issue: Team Green's assertion the shop was not within the 500-foot state-mandated buffer from a school. However, the store would be 443 feet away from the Tobin Community Center, which is conected to the Tobin K-8 School and which has a large number of youth programs.