New York’s Office of Cannabis Management announced on Monday the opening of four new adult-use dispensaries across the state in Saranac Lake, Astoria (Queens), Harlem (Manhattan), and the Lower East Side (Manhattan), with a fifth, a delivery operation in Rome, also opening. The openings come on the heels of the State’s opening of the non-conditional adult-use license application process which began on October 4.
“Today, we are proud to announce the openings of five brand-new adult-use dispensaries across New York State,” Chris Alexander, Executive Director of New York’s Office of Cannabis Management. “Creating a new cannabis industry centered around equity requires resiliency in the face of adversity and we’re grateful for the licensees’ perseverance and commitment to launch their legal, licensed operations. We want to thank Governor Hochul for her continued support of our efforts to build the nation’s most equitable cannabis industry. We’re making remarkable strides toward providing New Yorkers with safe, tested cannabis products. New York is building something special, and these entrepreneurs represent the best of what our State has to offer.”
Elevate ADK, previously operating as a cannabis delivery-only dispensary, was the first licensed business to make adult-use cannabis sales in the North Country, and will be the first based out of Saranac Lake. Elevate ADK is owned and operated by Eli Emery. Before launching Elevate ADK, Emery worked in organic vegetable farming and worked at farmers markets around the North Country for years.
Terp Bros will be the first dispensary in Astoria, Queens and the second in the borough. It is owned and operated by Jeremy Rivera, who previously operated J&A Building Consultants, an authorized Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and New York City’s Department of Buildings (DOB) construction safety business. To commemorate their opening, Terp Bros will unveil a mural painted byZeehan Wazed, a Queens-raised, world-renowned artist whose murals have been featured at Arthur Ashe Stadium during the US Open, on Diversity Plaza in Jackson Heights, and Under the Oculus at the World Trade Center.
Gotham Buds will be Harlem’s first adult-use dispensary, opening on 125th street just down the street from the famous Apollo Theater. The New York State Cannabis Social Equity Investment Fund facilitated the build-out of the dispensary pursuant to funding authority established in the New York State FY 2023 Enacted Budget. Gotham Buds is owned by Jeffrey Lopez, Omar Tejeda, Gregory Gray, Brian Jones and Malika Bellamy. Lopez previously owned and operated J.D.G. Mobile Car Wash in New York City.
CONBUD will be the first adult-use dispensary to open in the Lower East Side. CONBUD is owned and operated by Coss Marte, a Lower East Side native who also owns CONBODY, a world-renowned fitness method based on prison-style bodyweight workouts. CONBUD, similar to CONBODY, proudly hires formerly incarcerated individuals as staff.
Additionally, Air City Cannabis will soon open a cannabis delivery- only dispensary based in Rome, New York, bringing the total number of operational adult-use dispensaries to 27. Air City Cannabis is owned and operated by Courtney Forester, who owned and operated I-Candies, a fashion boutique & independent women’s clothing store. For a comprehensive list of legal, licensed New York State adult-use cannabis dispensaries, head here.
All five businesses were licensed through New York’s Conditional Adult-Use Retail Dispensary (CAURD) program. CAURD licenses are essential to the New York State Seeding Opportunity Initiative. Through the Seeding Opportunity Initiative, New York’s first legal adult-use retail dispensaries are operated by those who were most impacted by the unjust enforcement of cannabis prohibition or by nonprofit organizations whose services include support for the formerly incarcerated. All adult-use licensed retail dispensaries exclusively sell cannabis products grown by farmers in New York State.
“From Saranac Lake to Astoria, New York’s cannabis market is growing. It is wonderful to celebrate store openings across the State,” said Tremaine Wright, Chair of New York’s Cannabis Control Board. “The New York cannabis market is expanding and being led by entrepreneurs who imbue the values of the MRTA.”
