New York’s Office of Cannabis Management (OCM) has announced where the first conditional adult-use dispensary licenses will be located based on state region. On Aug. 25, OCM began accepting applications.
Applicants for Conditional Adult Use Retail Dispensary (CAURD) licenses will select five New York regions where they prefer to locate a dispensary out of a total of 14 regions outlined by the state. The number of conditional adult-use dispensaries that will be located in each region is based on population, with Manhattan set to have the most with 22 and the Mohawk Valley set to have the least with 2.
Up to 150 CAURD licenses will be approved in the application round, according to OCM.
New York will issue the 150 CAURD licenses to social equity applicants who have been harmed by cannabis prohibition. A $200-million Social Equity Cannabis Investment Fund developed by the state as part of its Seeding Opportunity Initiative will make loans available to these applicants.
CAURD applicants and licensees must prove they or a family member—a “parent, spouse, child, legal guardian, or dependent; or someone that they were the dependent of”—were arrested for a “marihuana-related offense” before March 31, 2021, according to OCM. They must also have owned at least 10% of a “qualifying business” and controlled it for two years.
Nonprofit applicants will also select their five preferential regions from the state’s list of 14 regions, and OCM will award up to 25 licenses to qualifying nonprofit applicants.
