RENSSELAER, N.Y. — Stage One Dispensary celebrated its grand opening at their 810 Broadway location, Friday morning.
State and local officials were on hand for the festivities. In what has been a slow rollout by the State Office of Cannabis Management, this marks the second dispensary opening in the Capital Region, joining Upstate Canna Co in Schenectady, which opened in April.
Stage One Dispensary is owned by Galina and Nathaniel Innes, along with Josh and Sugey Mirsky. They expressed their excitement at the culmination of the store’s opening.
“We are super humbled and grateful to be here in this moment,” Josh Mirsky said of finally realizing the dream.
Nathaniel Innes also thanked the City of Rensselaer for their partnership.
“They’ve made the process as smooth as it can possibly be in these difficult situations,” Innes noted on getting the details for the opening hashed out.
One of the objectives of New York’s cannabis management rollout has been to establish a social and economic equity program to actively encourage members from communities disproportionally impacted by the policies of prohibition to participate in the new industry.
Mirsky spoke to the legal troubles the four had faced in the past with cannabis-related arrests.
“The