THE SAUGUS ADVOCATE – FriDAy, JUnE 14, 2024 Page 15 LEAPING | FROM PAGE 1 challenged the permit. But a ruling this week by the state Land Court granted a motion by Sanctuary Medicinals to dismiss the part of the lawsuit filed by Northeastcann which challenged the S-2 permit issued to Sanctuary. A fourpage opinion issued Monday (June 10) by Judge Michael D. Vhay determined that Northeastcann had no legal basis for challenging Sanctuary’s S-2 permit. Sanctuary has submitted plans to build its dispensary at 181 Broadway, site of the former 99 Restaurant. Issuance of the S-2 permit enables the company to enter into a host community agreement with Town Manager Scott C. Crabtree. “Sanctuary is free and clear from litigation now, so we’re happy with this ruling,” said Saugus Attorney Peter Flynn, who has been working as a legal consultant for Sanctuary. “Our clients are just looking forward to setting up a host community agreement with the town manager and moving forward on this soon and hope to take this to the town manager within days,” Flynn told The Saugus Advocate in an interview this week. Flynn explained that Sanctuary being named as a defendant in Northeastcann’s lawsuit against the town “sort of froze things up,” creating an environment that wasn’t conducive to negotiations with the town, the attorney noted. “Judge Vhay was very clear in his ruling that this was a baseless lawsuit. And it set us back a quarter of a million - LEGAL NOTICE - COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS THE TRIAL COURT PROBATE AND FAMILY COURT Essex Probate and Family Court 36 Federal Street Salem, MA 01970 (978) 744-1020 Docket No. ES24P1725EA Estate of: ELIZABETH ANN THOMAS Also known as: ELIZABETH THOMAS, ELIZABETH A. THOMAS Date of Death: 05/23/2024 CITATION ON PETITION FOR FORMAL ADJUDICATION To all interested persons: A Petition for Probate of Will with Appointment of Personal Representative has been filed by Joshua D. Sheehan of Peoria, AZ requesting that the Court enter a formal Decree and Order and for such other relief as requested in the Petition. The Petitioner requests that: Joshua D. Sheehan of Peoria, AZ be appointed as Personal Representative(s) of said estate to serve Without Surety on the bond in unsupervised administration. IMPORTANT NOTICE You have the right to obtain a copy of the Petition from the Petitioner or at the Court. You have a right to object to this proceeding. To do so, you or your attorney must file a written appearance and objection at this Court before: 10:00 a.m. on the return day of 07/16/2024. This is NOT a hearing date, but a deadline by which you must file a written appearance and objection if you object to this proceeding. If you fail to file a timely written appearance and objection followed by an affidavit of objections within thirty (30) days of the return day, action may be taken without further notice to you. UNSUPERVISED ADMINISTRATION UNDER THE MASSACHUSETTS UNIFORM PROBATE CODE (MUPC) A Personal Representative appointed under the MUPC in an unsupervised administration is not required to file an inventory or annual accounts with the Court. Persons interested in the estate are entitled to notice regarding the administration directly from the Personal Representative and may petition the Court in any matter relating to the estate, including the distribution of assets and expenses of administration. WITNESS, Hon. Frances M. Giordano, First Justice of this Court. Date: June 10, 2024 PAMELA A. CASEY O’BRIEN REGISTER OF PROBATE June 14, 2024 dollars, when you consider the time lost, legal costs and having to pay rent at the location where we want to start our business,” Flynn said. “We’re ready to start work on the 99 and converting it into a facility for our business. But we need to get the host agreement set up with the town manager,” he said. “As it stands right now, we’re the only one holding a permit [to open a retail marijuana facility in Saugus] and who is not part of any litigation. Sanctuary is in the best position to do business financially.” A closer look at the judge’s ruling Northeastcann had sought an S-2 permit for its proposed site at 1529 Broadway, where the Avalon Motel is located. But its application failed on a 2-2 vote by selectmen. That prompted a lawsuit early this year by Northeastcann against the Town of Saugus, the Board of Selectmen and Sanctuary which challenged two decisions. The first count of the complaint challenged the denial of Northeastcann’s application. The second count – the one which Judge Vhay dismissed – challenged the permit obtained by Sanctuary. Lawyers for Sanctuary filed a motion with the Land Court, contending that Northeastcann lacked standing under state law to challenge Sanctuary’s special permit. Judge Vhay agreed. “Abutters to a property that’s received a special permit have a rebuttable presumption that they’re persons aggrieved,” the judge wrote in his ruling. “But Northeastcann doesn’t own property abutting the site of Sanctuary’s proposed marijuana facility. In fact, Northeastcann neither owns nor rents any land whatsoever in Saugus,” Judge Vhay said. “Northeastcann thus lacks the statutory presumption of standing. It nonetheless argues it has standing sufficient to survive Sanctuary’s motion to dismiss on account of (1) being a party to a letter of intent to lease the site of its own proposed marijuana facility in Saugus and (2) its reduced chances of getting a license from the Town of Saugus to open Northeastcann’s own facility [assuming the Court reverses the Selectboard’s decision denying Northeastcann’s permit application, the subject of Northeastcann’s Count 1] now that Sanctuary has its special permit. Neither argument is persuasive,” the judge concluded. The judge said Northeastcann would still lack standing as an abutter if it owned the property that it plans to build on. Northeastcann’s proposed site at 1529 Broadway is 2.8 miles from Sanctuary’s proposed site at 181 Broadway. Since Northeastcann doesn’t enjoy a presumption of standing, it must show that it is “a person aggrieved,” the judge said. “In other words,” he added, the permit issued to Sanctuary must cause harm to Northeastcann. “That the granting of Sanctuary’s special permit may reduce the chances of Northeastcann getting a cannabis-facility is not an interest Saugus’s Zoning Bylaws or the Zoning Act expressly protects,” the judge said. “Northeastcann concedes that the Zoning Bylaw doesn’t cap, for example, the number of special permits available to marijuana retailers; instead, Northeastcann is fearful that, with a special permit in hand, Sanctuary will proceed to get a separate cannabis operating license (a non-zoning approval), which in turn will allegedly reduce Northeastcann’s chances of getting a similar non-zoning license,” the ruling continued. “Northeastcann cites no authority that a party’s interest in obtaining a non-zoning approval generally, or a cannabis license in particular, falls within those interests the Zoning Act protects, a prerequisite for claiming ‘aggrieveLEAPING | SEE PAGE 17 - LEGAL NOTICE - COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS THE TRIAL COURT PROBATE AND FAMILY COURT Essex Probate and Family Court 36 Federal Street Salem, MA 01970 (978) 744-1020 Docket No. ES24P1665EA Estate of: FRANK A. RECUPERO Also known as: FRANK RECUPERO Date of Death: 04/01/2021 CITATION ON PETITION FOR FORMAL ADJUDICATION To all interested persons: A Petition for Late and Limited Formal Testacy and/or Appointment has been filed by Josephine Henry of Caver, MA requesting that the Court enter a formal Decree and Order and for such other relief as requested in the Petition. The Petitioner requests that: Josephine Henry of Caver, MA be appointed as Personal Representative(s) of said estate to serve Without Surety on the bond in unsupervised administration. IMPORTANT NOTICE You have the right to obtain a copy of the Petition from the Petitioner or at the Court. You have a right to object to this proceeding. To do so, you or your attorney must file a written appearance and objection at this Court before: 10:00 a.m. on the return day of 07/19/2024. This is NOT a hearing date, but a deadline by which you must file a written appearance and objection if you object to this proceeding. If you fail to file a timely written appearance and objection followed by an affidavit of objections within thirty (30) days of the return day, action may be taken without further notice to you. UNSUPERVISED ADMINISTRATION UNDER THE MASSACHUSETTS UNIFORM PROBATE CODE (MUPC) A Personal Representative appointed under the MUPC in an unsupervised administration is not required to file an inventory or annual accounts with the Court. Persons interested in the estate are entitled to notice regarding the administration directly from the Personal Representative and may petition the Court in any matter relating to the estate, including the distribution of assets and expenses of administration. WITNESS, Hon. Frances M. Giordano, First Justice of this Court. Date: June 07, 2024 PAMELA A. CASEY O’BRIEN REGISTER OF PROBATE June 14, 2024
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