A company that holds medical cannabis business licenses in several states received a tentative green light from zoning board officials to open the first dispensary in Boston despite resistance from locals.
A recent poll also found that almost 60% of nearby residents are against the business’s location, as are local law enforcement officials.
Boston’s Zoning Board of Appeals delayed making a decision twice on whether to allow the dispensary to set up shop in the location, but on Tuesday morning it granted the company conditional approval.
Patriot Care must continuously run a medical marijuana operation in the facility, and the company has agreed to donate some of the space to a nonprofit, according to the Boston Business Journal.
The company was awarded a license last week to grow, process and sell medical marijuana in New York under the name Columbia Care. It also runs dispensaries in Arizona, has a license to open a storefront in Illinois, and has a presence in Washington DC and Nevada, according to its website.
Massachusetts’ first dispensary, Alternative Therapies Group, opened in Salem in June, kicking off an MMJ industry that could eventually generate tens of millions of dollars in annual sales.
