Somerville, MA Public Conduct: Public Marijuana Use (2026)

Sec. 9-3(a) of the Code of Ordinances prohibits giving, selling, delivering, or consuming marijuana or tetrahydrocannabinol in a public park, playground, rest area, school grounds, recreational area, swimming pool, skating rink, or the common areas of city housing authority projects, and it bars consuming marijuana within 50 feet of any of those places. Common areas of housing projects are defined broadly to include hallways, stairwells, front steps, basements, rooftops, sidewalks, parking areas, roadways, and park areas (Sec. 9-3(a)). 16 of the zoning ordinance (Sec. 9-3(b)).

The ordinance traces to Ord. No. 2009-05 and was amended three times, most recently by Ord. No. 2018-23, effective December 13, 2018, tightening it after adult-use recreational marijuana became legal in Massachusetts. Enforcement sits with the Somerville Police Department or any other person granted police powers by law, who may confiscate any marijuana or THC found in a violator's possession at the time of the citation (Sec. 9-3(c)). The prohibition sits within Chapter 9, Article I, alongside the city's open-container alcohol rule (Sec. 9-1), and applies regardless of the person's age or license status.