ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) – After the state issued relocation notices to marijuana dispensary owners, it was blamed on a mistake made by past leadership. NEWS10 talked to that leader who said they followed state law and fears it could impact the entire market.
It all stemmed from a rule that measures a dispensary’s distance to a school. The Office of Cannabis Management (OCM) issued those letters on July 28. 152 dispensary owners across the state, including two here in the Capital Region, were told they need to relocate.
Governor Kathy Hochul attributed the upheaval to previous leadership that she said did things “improperly”. Chris Alexander had previously served as the Executive Director of OCM. He said they followed the state’s procedures.
“Right now what we are witnessing is a manufactured crisis,” said Alexander. When OCM initially changed the school measurement rule, from 500 feet from a school’s property line to 500 feet from its front door, he said they followed protocols under the State Administrative Procedure Act (SAPA).
But last month, notices were sent out to those 152 impacted dispensaries saying they had to relocate. “They’ve been all that we hoped that they would be,” said Alexander.
After those relocation notices were sent out, Governor Kathy Hochul addressed the concerns, saying…“It’s a major screw up. When I found out about it, I was very angry, to say the least. Because these people have worked hard, they’ve waited a long time.”
“If there’s a desire to change the rule, then I think the state should have to go through the legal process, both publishing that rule, going through those layers of approvals and, of course, putting it out for public comment. I think what’s happening right now is not only unnecessary and manufactured in a way, but it’s also just incredibly destabilizing and not just for those retailers but for the entire market,” said Alexander.
He spoke to us in his new capacity as the executive director of the NAACP New York Conference and said 90 percent of the impacted business owners were social equity businesses.
“I’ve been quiet for a long time, but I decided that in order to protect them, to protect the spirit of the law and the people who are benefiting from this new program, that again, is, you know, built like no other in the sense that it prioritizes those who are most impacted. That’s the reason I’ve decided to now use my voice to say that what’s being said is not what happened,” said Alexander.
He believes every piece of the supply chain will be impacted, if the dispensaries are forced to move or shut their doors.
“This may be being discussed as in a couple of stores having to change a location or move down a block. But that’s not exactly how this works,” said Alexander.
He said he’s working with owners, trying to figure out how to proceed and ensure their businesses – that families have poured life savings into – are protected.
“Before we propose a solution, we’ve got to better understand the problem. You know, there’s not been in the time that the legal stores have been operating a single report of a sale to a minor,” said Alexander. “A decision has been made to divert from a standing rule that was legally created. We need to know why.”
So far, two civil lawsuits have been filed against the state by the impacted business owners. Plaintiffs in one case are seeking a preliminary injunction. A court hearing on that matter is slated for August 28. Alexander had a message to impacted owners.
“There are people who are rooting for them, that we as the state conference of the NAACP are going to stand with them and advocate for an end to this mess, that leaves them whole, leaves them in the location that they’re operating from. And so, however we can be helpful, we continue to be. But I know that they have amongst them already a great bit of tenacity,” said Alexander.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by PostX News and is published from a syndicated feed.)
