SUNDERLAND — The Select Board has approved transferring a special permit and host community agreement for a proposed marijuana dispensary on Amherst Road to a family business venture.

In 2022, the town initially approved a special permit for Gracious Greens, a proposed retail dispensary to be located at 267 Amherst Road (Route 116), but the consultant leading the project said the owners of that company needed to drop out of the business.

“They’ve just had a bunch of events occur over the last couple years, which has led them to need to divest from the project, unfortunately,” Peter D’Agostino, who has been serving as the business’ consultant, said at an Oct. 2 Select Board meeting.

Taking the place of the original owners is Mark Townsend, as well as his sons Matt and John, who are members of the family that has operated Danvers-based Townsend Energy for nearly a century.

The family plans to operate a 2,000-square-foot store, which would be Sunderland’s first dispensary, although it will be one of several in the region. Happy Feelings dispensary opened in August in the former Sugarloaf Shoppes in Whately, and another store is also permitted to open in the same plaza. There are a handful of dispensaries in Hadley and Amherst as well.

As part of the special permit conditions, the store must end retail operations at 10 p.m. and meet with Police Chief Erik Demetropoulos, the Select Board and Town Administrator Geoff Kravitz to discuss traffic impacts on the site after three, six and 12 months of operation.

Currently, D’Agostino said the Townsend family has yet to choose a different name for the store, but they will be working on it.

The Select Board had few questions for the business’ new owners, although Chair Nathaniel Waring and member Christyl Drake-Tremblay both asked the Townsends if they intended to spend a lot of time on site at the store when it does open. The previous owners of Gracious Greens said they planned on being present at the store during operation.

“Are you talking [about] being on site a couple days a month, are you talking a couple days a week?” Drake-Tremblay asked. “I think that’s an important thing to know, what your commitment to being on site is.”

John and Matt Townsend, who will be overseeing the operation of the business, said they plan to be at the store for four to five days a week in the beginning, and then ease back to two or three days a week once the store gains its footing.

“We do plan on being out in Sunderland, Matt or I, a majority of the time with a local GM (general manager),” John Townsend said.

The Select Board last week approved the transfer of the special permit and host community agreement. Kravitz said they may end up renegotiating the host community agreement, though, because the state recently passed new cannabis regulations.

“We’re so excited to be in the town,” D’Agostino said, “and we look forward to delivering a project here.”

Chris Larabee can be reached at clarabee@recorder.com or 413-930-4081.