GLOUCESTER TOWNSHIP, NJ — A proposed dispensary on the Black Horse Pike can move forward, according to Gloucester Township officials.
On June 26, the Zoning Board granted tentative approval for a cannabis retailer at a mixed-use development that formerly housed an exotic-bird store. The applicant, Joseph Villari, will receive full approval if his application meets certain conditions.
Villari, a Mantua resident, applied to open a dispensary with a drive-thru at 1610 N Black Horse Pike. The property was the longtime site of Fancy Feathers Exotic Birds, which has closed, and also contains a home.
The business requested two variances from the Zoning Board: one to allow for a dispensary to be developed within 500 feet of a home, which the township normally prohibits, and another to allow a drive-thru.
The township allows cannabis dispensaries to have drive-thrus for appointment-based pickups. But those businesses must be able to fit a line of five vehicles on-site, and they can’t solely conduct business through the drive-thru window.
The Zoning Board will review the dispensary application at a future meeting to see if the business met certain conditions required for full approval — although it isn’t fully clear yet what those conditions are.
It’s also unclear which approvals the business