BudDigest

REQUEST PULLED: Greenlight Little Rock had targeted a site in Jacksonville near Cabot.

A Little Rock medical marijuana dispensary’s request to move to a Jacksonville location near its border with Cabot won’t be on next week’s agenda for the state Medical Marijuana Commission. 

Advertisement

Green Light Little Rock, located at 7303 Kanis Road, planned to ask the state Medical Marijuana Commission for approval to move to 7418 TP White Drive, according to documents filed with the commission. The location is listed as having an address in Cabot, although the location is actually in Jacksonville, according to commission spokesman Scott Hardin.

A zoning map on the city of Jackonville’s website shows the area as being within the city of Jacksonville. 

Advertisement

The commission’s agenda showed Greenlight’s transfer request on Wednesday afternoon but Hardin said today that Greenlight had asked to table the request.

Jacksonville Mayor Jeff Elmore had submitted a letter to the commission, saying the move has his “total support” and that he helped Green Light management find a suitable location in the city. 

Advertisement

“The income to the city this business will provide will be invaluable and aid in fostering more economic growth for the city and provide much-needed resources for the

Read More Here...

COLONIE, N.Y. (NEWS10) — Legacy Dispensary is set to open its doors at 1839 Central Avenue in Colonie. According to CEO Matthew Robinson, the dispensary got its final approval and is set to open its storefront to the public on Friday, February 2 at 2 p.m.

Get the latest news, weather, sports and more delivered right to your inbox!

Legacy Dispensers originally opened in April 2023 as a delivery-only cannabis service. The company also sold its products at Cannabis Growers Showcases around New York.

“Legacy has been working hard with licensed NYS cultivators and processors to bring quality products to New York State,” said Robinson. “Finally, after a long wait and months of anticipation, one of NYS’s premier cannabis dispensaries, Legacy Dispensary, will have its soft opening and grand opening on February 2.”

Marcella’s opens new warehouse, buys Saratoga appliance store

The dispensary will have cannabis products such as pre-rolls, flower, edibles, vapes and vape carts, disposables, tinctures, drinks and more, said Robinson. Another cannabis dispensary, Brownies Brand, is also set to open soon in Colonie at 1686 Central Avenue.

Read More Here...

PHOTO BY JESSE DAVIS / THE VILLAGE REPORTERNEW FIRE LIEUTENANTS SWORN IN … Swanton Mayor Neil Toeppe, left, swears in new Fire Lieute…

SUBSCRIBERS – To access our daily local news stories that appear online up to a week before they are published within the traditional weekly edition, please login.

Not currently a subscriber?  Support LOCAL family-owned, LOCAL resident-operated small business by obtaining seven days of website access, along with the current full-color E-Edition (same as the print edition) for just $2.00. 

*Obtain a traditional subscription longer than 7 days and you will receive all these benefits plus the traditional mailed print edition every week!

Read More Here...

Subscribe to our newsletter dedicated to New York’s Cannabis industry with a focus on the Mid-Hudson region. Sign-Up now to receive the newsletters. By signing up, you agree to receive information and advertising related to cannabis, cannabis dispensaries, cultivators, processors, and similar regulated entities.

New Lawsuit Challenges Licensing and Fee Schedule Advantages For Women and Minorities; Claims White Men Denied Equal Protection

January 25, 2024 – A lawsuit filed yesterday in the United States District Court for the Northern District of New York challenges the advantages given to women and minority applicants in retail licensing by the Office of Cannabis Management. The plaintiff, Valencia AG, LLC, based in Jamesville, NY is owned by “males of light pigmentation who might best be described as Caucasian or white men,” according to the complaint. Valencia filed an application with OCM on October 12, 2023 seeking a microbusiness cannabis license. Not falling into any of the categories for SEE status, Valencia was unable to request any sort of priority status in its application.

Believing that priority would be given to applicants that attested they either owned or rented space that was immediately ready to open, and relying

Read More Here...

On Monday, Judge Michael P. Mills of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Mississippi, dismissed a lawsuit filed by Tru Source Medical Cannabis owner Clarence Cocroft II challenging the state’s ban on advertising legal medical marijuana businesses. 

Cocroft, who is represented by the Institute for Justice (IJ), said he will appeal the decision. He contends that he should be able to advertise like any other business owner and that it is unfair to have to rely just on word of mouth.

 “I’m prepared to fight this fight for as long as it takes,” Cocroft said. “This case is bigger than me and my dispensary – it is about defending the right of everyone to truthfully advertise their legal business in the cannabis industry.” 

Cocroft opened Tru Source in Olive Branch, shortly after the state law legalizing medical cannabis went into effect in 2022. Mississippi law allows for the cultivation of medical marijuana to be sold to prescription holders in state-licensed dispensaries, such as Tru Source. 

However, under state law, the Department of Health (DOH) has wide discretion to enact restrictions on advertising by dispensaries and prohibits dispensaries from advertising and marketing in any media  including newspapers, television,

Read More Here...

Maine lawmakers are considering a proposal to legalize cannabis social clubs and other forms of on-site consumption, according to a Spectrum News report.

Sponsored by state Rep. David Boyer (R-Poland), the proposal would establish a cannabis-based hospitality industry in Maine by giving tourists a place to legally consume. If approved, the bill would establish a “cannabis hospitality establishment license” that would need to be acquired before businesses could allow on-site consumption.

LD 1952 appeared recently before the Legislature’s Veterans and Legal Affairs Committee.

“It would provide a controlled and regulated environment for adults similar to a brew pub that allows you try different beers and then take some home. This would help ensure public safety and reduce the likelihood of public cannabis consumption in inappropriate places.” — Boyer, in a statement to the state Veterans and Legal Affairs Committee, via Spectrum News

The proposal is notably opposed by John Hudak, Director of the Maine Office of Cannabis Policy, whose concerns range from poor air quality in cannabis clubs to the potential for increased impaired driving. “This bill simply does not address the serious public health and safety issues raised by permitting the public consumption of a substance that impairs critical

Read More Here...

About one-third (32%) of cannabis consumers say that if a rescheduling action were to restrict the industry by requiring retail sales to be prescription-based via pharmacies, they would risk criminal penalties by reverting to the illicit market, according to a survey reported on by Marijuana Moment. A slight majority (55%) of respondents said that if their only legal option was through pharmacies, they would do so.

The survey — which was conducted by the cannabis telemedicine firm NuggMD — polled 795 respondents via the company’s opt-in email list about multiple topics including their current ability to access consumer cannabis products and potential effects of the Biden Administration’s proposed Schedule III rescheduling action.

NuggMD’s head of legal and policy research Deb Tharp said the results show that consumers are at risk under the proposed rescheduling plan unless lawmakers pass legislation “to preserve existing state markets.”

“According to government estimates, more than 35 million Americans use cannabis on a monthly basis. Pushing more than 10 million people into the unregulated market for cannabis strikes me as a very bad outcome because black market cannabis is not safe. I don’t think the severity of this situation is entirely clear to policymakers.” — Tharp,

Read More Here...

EAST PEORIA, Ill., January 25, 2024–(BUSINESS WIRE)–NOXX Cannabis is thrilled to announce the grand opening celebration of its East Peoria dispensary on Saturday, January 27, at 9 am. Conveniently located at 300 S Main Street, across Main Street from Kroger, the recreational cannabis dispensary is within walking distance of the Levee District just south of Costco and Chick-Fil-A – accessible off of West Washington St. through Columbia St. Ample parking is available onsite.

The first 100 customers will receive an 8th for just $1.00. Additionally, all customers will receive a free t-shirt and other giveaways. The celebration will include amazing deals and representatives from some of the top Illinois cannabis brands.

NOXX Cannabis offers an unmatched shopping experience, including a large selection of cannabis products, out of this world cannabis deals, and unparalleled customer service. The dispensary offers cannabis products in a variety of forms, including packaged flower, pre-roll singles and multipacks, infused pre-rolls, all in one vapes, chocolate and gummy edibles, and concentrates. Customers will also enjoy NOXX’s warm and welcoming atmosphere. The NOXX development is a major improvement to the area, beautifying a vital part of Main Street. Its interior achieves a modern appearance, featuring vaulted ceilings and a large

Read More Here...

Based in Queens, Rachel is currently the director of content and social at Gotham, a recreational cannabis dispensary. Before venturing into marketing, she wrote four books of fiction and poetry and toured internationally, reading her work at over 100 different venues.

We spent two minutes with Rachel to learn more about her background, her creative inspirations and recent work she’s admired.

Rachel, tell us …

Where you grew up, and where you live now.

I grew up in Indianapolis. I now live in Queens, NYC.

How you first got interested in cannabis.

There was nothing to do in suburban Indiana but get high. I was a rebellious preacher’s daughter going to punk shows. It was exciting and against the rules. And when I was a teen, “exciting” and “against the rules” were synonymous.

One of your favorite projects you’ve ever worked on.

When I first accepted a job that required me to use Photoshop, I was really bad at it. So I started designing a T-shirt every day. I figured I could teach myself by doing it. Funny enough, it’s become a pretty valuable side-hustle for me now. Plus, it’s creatively rewarding. I no longer do it daily, though.

A recent project you’re

Read More Here...

More than half a dozen New York medical cannabis companies can now sell recreational marijuana in the state.

Sixwere granted a “registered organization dispensing” (ROD) license in December, with two more approved during a special meeting of the Cannabis Control Board earlier this month, including the Chicago-based Green Thumb Industries (GTI).

Green Thumb entered New York’s cannabis market when they acquired Fiorello Pharmaceuticals in 2019. Today, the Chicago-based company operates four medical dispensaries under Fiorello’s medical license and 91 recreational operations across 15 states.

Dominic O’Brien is Senior Vice President of Revenue for GTI, whose Henrietta location, RISE, south of Rochester, is the only one of the company’s New York dispensaries to have opened to recreational customers.

“We’ve been serving our medical patients, going on five years now. That continues, and always will be a priority for us.” O’Brien said. “That’s how GTI got started, not just in New York but in most of our markets. Most markets are medical markets first, before they become adult-use markets.”

Now, O’Brien is excited and optimistic about being able to bring even more products to RISE, like “our Dog Walkers, Incredibles, EVO, all these wonderful products that we sell across 14 different states.”

Registered organizations – another name for medical

Read More Here...