Brooklyn’s recreational marijuana stores have been unable to open because of a lawsuit, which a federal judge rejected in New York’s attempt to get dismissed. Thus, 63 of the 150 adult-use retail licenses that the state had anticipated issuing will continue to be issued indefinitely. On behalf of Variscite, a firm he owns and operates, Kenneth Gay of Michigan filed a lawsuit against the state’s Office of Cannabis Management in November.
According to the lawsuit, the corporation has suffered irreparable harm because the state of New York requires cannabis retail applicants to have both a “substantial presence” there and a criminal record for marijuana-related convictions.
In Los Angeles and other cities around the nation, Kenneth Gay is fighting against a number of marijuana social justice projects. When completing their applications, prospective New Yorkers seeking CUARD licenses must select one of 14 regions from the state’s landscape. The Finger Lakes were Variscite’s preferred option.
However, a temporary restraining order, issued to the corporation by federal Judge Gary Sharpe in November, has prevented licenses from being issued in that area as well as Brooklyn, Central New York, Mid-Hudson, and Western New York.
In addition to requesting that the lawsuit be dismissed and that only the Finger Lakes region of New York be affected, the attorney general’s office made these requests to the court. Tuesday, Sharpe made a decision that both requests were denied.
The Federal Circuit Court of Appeals will likely hear New York’s appeal in the dispute over its adult-use marijuana laws. Only two licensed outlets have begun doing business in the state since adult-use sales were made legal in March 2021. In Lower Manhattan, both are located. There may be 1,400 unauthorized cannabis vendors operating in New York City alone, thus an ambitious black market for cannabis is still thriving.
