Delaware awards 15 licenses for recreational marijuana retailers
- Delaware issued 15 new recreational marijuana licenses for retailers through a lottery held by the state's cannabis regulatory agency.
- The winning numbers were chosen from a pool of 529 applicants.
- The identities of the winning businesses will be announced next week.
- The Kent County licensees may face challenges due to opposition from the mayor of Dover, who recently vetoed ordinances related to adult use regulations citing concerns about illegal drugs in the city.
Delaware issued 15 more recreational marijuana licenses for retailers via a lottery held by the state’s cannabis regulatory agency.
The winning numbers, selected Thursday from a pool of 529 applicants through a computer-generated system, were revealed during a Facebook Live broadcast.
The business’ identities will be announced next week, according to a news release from the Office of the Marijuana Commissioner (OMC).
The adult-use licenses issued Thursday were distributed statewide:
Kent County licensees could face a roadblock, however.
The Kent County seat is in Dover, where Mayor Robin Christianson recently vetoed four ordinances passed by the City Council that would have regulated adult use.
Christianson said Dover has enough issues with illegal drugs, according to Delaware Public Media.
The Council has called a special meeting for Jan. 2 to decide whether to override the veto, the news outlet reported.
Thursday’s lottery for retail licenses was separate from one in October that awarded 99 adult-use permits for cultivation, manufacturing and social equity retailers.
Fifteen social equity retail permits were granted in that Oct. 24 lottery.
Two lotteries were required because of the volume of applicants for cannabis business licenses.
“When we opened the application process, we received over 1,200 applications for 125 licenses across various categories,” Delaware Marijuana Commissioner Robert Coupe told Dover-based TV station WBOC.
“Of those, 529 were submitted and paid for the 15 open retail licenses.”
The selected applicants still must complete supplemental applications and then the OMC will begin background checks.