Update On Roosevelt Island Cannabis Dispensary Application Rejected By Local Community Board, Proposal To Be Reviewed By NY State Office Of Cannabis Management For Final Determination
There is currently an application by Empire Flowers Inc, to open a combination flower shop and Cannabis Dispensary at 520 Main Street on Roosevelt Island.
The local Manhattan Community Board rejected the application during their November 19 meeting last night,
The proposed Cannabis Dispensary location has received a great deal of local opposition from members of the community because of it’s proximity to schools, youth centers and houses of worship. The proposed location is within 500 feet of a school and 200 feet of a house of worship.
However, the schools and house of worship are within buildings that have other uses. Community members have been told that because they are not the sole occupants of a building within that distance, a Cannabis Dispensary may legally be allowed within 500 feet of a school and 200 feet of a house of worship.
I am preparing a story on the proposed.Roosevelt Island Cannabis Dispensary.
Please let me know if the NY State Office of Cannabis Management (OCM) will comment on the following:
When is the Roosevelt Island Cannabis Dispensary application to be decided by the OCM?
Is there a public hearing on the matter?
What is the effect of an applicant rejection by the local community board?
Has OCM ever approved an applicant that was rejected by the community board?
Can a Cannabis Dispensary open within 500 feet of a school or 200 feet of house of worship if the buildings are used for other purposes? The Roosevelt Island Catholic Church is located above a NY Public Library branch and the school is at the ground floor of a residential building.
Thank you for your assistance in answering these questions of great importance to the Roosevelt Island community.
A spokesperson for the OCM replied December 2:
The Office of Cannabis Management (OCM) opens and reviews adult-use dispensary applications in queue order until they are vetted and ready for recommendation to the Cannabis Control Board (CCB). There is no set date for when the CCB will review or make a decision on any individual application. There is no public hearing specific to any single dispensary application, but all CCB meetings are open to the public, OCM posts meeting agendas beforehand, and CCB meetings are available for viewing online, both livestream and archived.
The CCB considers municipal and Community Board opinions in accordance with Section 76 of the Cannabis Law. A municipality or Community Board can provide an opinion on whether the CCB should grant or deny a license; that opinion is part of the record that the CCB reviews. However, the opinion is not the sole determinative factor of whether the CCB will grant or deny a license to an applicant; the municipal opinion is one of many factors that the CCB considers as the CCB approaches every decision, including approvals over municipal objection, consistent with their authority under section 76 of the state law.
Here’s the November 11 CB 8 Street Life Committee discussion of the Roosevelt Island Cannabis Dispensary application including a presentation by the owner Empire Flower and comments by Roosevelt Island residents.
