SOUTH HADLEY — South Hadley will consider lifting an eight-year ban on marijuana facilities in hopes of bringing in more business to town.

“With the economic times and the fact that new growth in South Hadley has stifled, if there is a person who wants to establish a cannabis business in South Hadley, then we’d love them,” Select Board Chair Jeff Cyr said.

The Select Board at its July 14 meeting requested that town staff analyze the potential public health, safety,and financial impacts if the ban were to be repealed. Feedback will be presented to the board in September, Town Administrator Lisa Wong said.

Cyr introduced the idea in hopes of attracting new business that would, in turn, generate more property tax revenue for the town. With a $3.5 million override vote coming to the ballot box on Sept. 1 — the second request this year after voters rejected $9 million and $11 million overrides last spring — the board must show it is doing everything to provide economic stability for the town, he said.

“Our residents are going across the bridge to our neighbors and getting it [cannabis] there, so why not allow the opportunity in South Hadley?” Cyr said.

While revenue from cannabis companies will not bail the town out of its financial crisis, Cyr said leadership is “looking for every dollar we can get.”

In 2018, South Hadley became the first Hampshire County community to prohibit marijuana facilities within its borders. This included not only dispensaries, but also greenhouses or manufacturing facilities. Westhampton and Cummington approved bans afterward.

Ban supporters worried about the public health impacts of marijuana on youth, as well as the increased demand for police and healthcare. Those who opposed the ban hoped marijuana facilities would bring in much needed revenue.

When recreational cannabis was first legalized in Massachusetts, there were a lot of questions and concerns about usage and regulations. Over the past decade, Cyr and Wong said a lot of those unknowns have been answered.

“I think the establishments have come a long way from back when this was voted on in 2018,” Select Board member Priscilla Marion said during the July 14 meeting.

“We might be late to the party though,” member Carol Constant responded.

Town Meeting has the authority to repeal the ban. Wong said this matter is a zoning bylaw change and goes through the same process as any other zoning alterations.

Staff have just begun their internal reviews. Wong encourages residents to email her their feedback on the ban repeal, since the bylaw was passed prior to her arrival in South Hadley.

“I do encourage folks to send me their thoughts and comments, especially if they have strong history especially from the debate (nearly) 10 years ago,” she said.

After the Select Board reviews the data, they can decide to send the ban repeal to relevant boards, such as the Planning Board and Board of Health. Each of these boards will hold public input sessions.

In addition to the ban, these boards will look at bylaws on where and how facilities are permitted.

Cyr has already received pushback from the public and from Board of Health Chair Karen Walsh Pio, and he expects more feedback from both sides of the debate. However, there is little that can sway him from putting the proposal in front of Town Meeting.

“We have to propose solutions for the betterment of the community,” Cyr said. “Some would frown on that statement for cannabis, but people are OK with that for adding restaurants with full liquor licenses.”