The line outside security to get in on 4/20 was long at new business Good Life Collective. Above the music, the din, the voice of the mayor of Rochester came through the walls from inside the store at 155 Monroe Ave.
“5…4…3…2…1,” Mayor Malik Evans said. “Happy 420!”
The inside crowd answered in kind.
In the lobby, the line would be moving soon to screen people and let them take a look at Rochester’s first legal, permanent cannabis dispensary. But first, the amped squad of waiting clients speculated about the festivities they could only hear through the wall.
“They should have had the mayor rip a bong hit and when he pulls out the stem it starts a Rube Goldberg machine that cuts the ribbon,” said one guy. The crowd laughed.
Inside, the mayor’s scissors were being put back in the city’s off-white “Ceremonial Scissors” box.
Owner and president Hiram Hernandez was circulating the shopping floor, beaming.
His family worked for years to make this dream come true — even opening a store in Oregon to learn about the business first. Being able to show profit on their overall business books was key, he said. The Puerto Rican family also runs a payments business.
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