Alex Silecchia, left, a marijuana “budtender,” also known as a sales associate, serves a customer at States Cannabis Company dispensary, Friday, Sept. 29, 2023, in New York. New York is set to dramatically expand its legal weed market and issue over 1,000 new licenses starting early next year, to include deep-pocketed marijuana companies.
Marte’s shop was among those temporarily blocked by a judge from opening after a group sued on behalf of disabled veterans, saying they were wrongly excluded from applying for a license. Marte, who has a past drug arrest, was paying rent on a store he could not open. Under new regulations, medical marijuana providers could begin retail recreational sales at one of their existing dispensaries as early as Dec. 29. They could begin selling recreational pot at two more dispensaries six months after that. The entry price for those companies is steep: a $20 million licensing fee, with $5 million due upfront. But multiple companies are expected to jump in.
To guard against retail monopolies, the medical providers will be limited to three retail outlets. And in a nod to farmers, their shops will initially have to devote half their shelf space to products grown and processed by independent businesses. “We were given a fair chance to grow. We were asked to do that,” he said. “We kept our promise. The state did not keep their promise.”
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