AAA Appliances May Relocate Due to Proposed Marijuana Biz

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A newly proposed recreational-medical marijuana business may take over the space of longtime Jamaica Plain business, AAA Appliances, which has been at its current location since around 1970.

The owner of AAA Appliances, Eleonore Grassa, is also the owner of the 767-773 Centre St. block, and has signed a letter of intent with Giving Tree Health Center, said Brian Bairos, Giving Tree's board president, director, CEP and head of cultivation.

An employee at AAA Appliances said that the business is not closing, and that it would either relocate to another Jamaica Plain location or possibly West Roxbury. AAA Appliances has been in Jamaica Plain for around 60 years, first in Hyde Square and in its current location since the 1970s.

Representatives of the Giving Tree Health Center are scheduled to attend the Jamaica Plain Business and Professional Association on March 20. There will also be a community meeting at the First Baptist Church on April 1, said Bairos to Jamaica Plain News.

Giving Tree has a letter of non-opposition and host community agreement signed with Fall River, according to The Herald News. Giving Tree has proposed having a growing facility and medical-recreational dispensary in Fall River. The company has a community meeting with Fall River on March 27 to talk about the proposal for that area.

"Right now we're going in front of the community. The most important part is to have the support of the community," said Bairos about the proposed Jamaica Plain dispensary.

Giving Tree is hiring a consultant company to provide a parking study, said Bairos. He said there are about eight or nine parking spaces behind the building, and mentioned the parking lot behind Blanchard's, which is commonly packed.

Bairos said he would like to educate people about the benefits of marijuana. He said he introduced his father to the medical properties of marijuana.

"He smokes cigarettes and drinks coffee all day and eats very little," said Bairos. Smoking marijuana at lunch and dinner has helped his father eat more than he had been doing.

"We all know there's lots of money to be made from it. But there's also lots that can be done with it. It has great medical prospects," said Bairos, adding that the medical benefits need to be studied.

If approved, this would be the second recreational marijuana business in Jamaica Plain. Core Empowerment is currently in the final stages of being fully approved, after recently gaining support from Boston's Zoning Board of Appeals. Core's next step is to get approved by the Massachusetts Cannabis Control Commission.

The city has also signed a host agreement with a medical marijuana company, Apothca Inc., for 54A Hyde Park Avenue.

Giving Tree is farther than a 1/2 mile away from both Apothca and Core Empowerment. Medical and recreational dispensaries are required by Boston zoning code to be at 1/2 mile away from each other.

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