A medical marijuana company has applied to open a dispensary in Manhasset.
The store would be a facility operated by MedMen, a company based in California that currently has four stores in the state of New York. Nassau County is home to one of them, which is in North New Hyde Park, and another is on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan.
Richard Bentley, president of the Council of Greater Manhasset Civic Associations, announced the news at the council’s meeting Wednesday. The room erupted in groans.
“I am going to jump out of my chair,” one woman said, shocked by the news.
“It’s going to be our next battle,” Bentley said.
MedMen submitted the application to the town Building Department for 1575 Northern Blvd., a building that is currently a Sleep Number mattress store.
Bentley noted potential obstacles for MedMen’s proposal getting approved as the site having limited parking and its proximity to a residential area.
Medical marijuana has been legal in New York since 2014, when Gov. Andrew Cuomo passed the Compassionate Care Act.
Medical marijuana companies interested in doing business in New York had to apply to the state in 2015 to become registered organizations. Each of the 10 registered, including MedMen, were then allowed to create a manufacturing facility in New York as well as up to four dispensaries.
Under the most recent version of the program, individuals with conditions that qualify for opioid prescriptions are eligible for medical marijuana.
In early August, Cuomo announced that he formed a working group to develop a bill that would legalize marijuana. The group is acting upon recommendations from the state’s Health Department, which published a report in July concluding that regulated legalization would have more positive impacts than negative ones. It predicted benefits for the state economy, public health and the rights of communities of color, which have disproportionately suffered under current policies.
MedMen CEO Adam Bierman is a vocal advocate for marijuana law reform, and, according to the company’s website, MedMen is “the single largest financial supporter of progressive marijuana laws at the local, state and federal levels, giving directly to pro-legalization groups, industry organizations and political candidates.”
The company did not respond to a request for comment.
