MILFORD, Ohio (WKRC) – Employees at UpLift, a medical marijuana dispensary, are waiting on pins and needles for a call from the Ohio Commerce Department saying they’re getting inspected and that they can start selling marijuana recreationally.
The state’s recreational program is getting ready to slowly launch over the next few weeks, nearly nine months after voters approved a measure legalizing the sale and use of recreational cannabis.
The Commerce Department’s Division of Cannabis Control received applications from 235 existing medical dispensaries, like UpLift, early this month, all asking for a dual license to begin selling recreational cannabis.
So far, only 20 dispensaries have received provisional licenses statewide, but that doesn’t mean they can begin selling immediately.
First, they have to be inspected, and their product needs to meet state standards before they can get a final certificate.
UpLift hasn’t gotten its provisional license yet, but the company’s retail operations manager, Courtney Pavlak, expects to start selling recreational marijuana sometime next month.
“Recently, we heard a rumor that we were supposed to start selling and go live with adult use this Friday. And that’s simply not true. There are a lot of steps that have to be taken in between this time.”
“Our best hope at this