Deadline for Portland pot license applications is Monday
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The city of Portland is poised to begin processing license applications for the retail sale of recreational marijuana. The application deadline is Monday.
Despite litigation over its rules for awarding licenses to sell recreational marijuana, the city of Portland appears ready to begin the process.
Monday is the deadline for businesses to apply for the licenses, which are required under a city ordinance that went into effect June 17. The law establishes operational rules for the retail sale of recreational cannabis, as well as a fee schedule, a mandatory 250-foot buffer between stores, and other requirements.
The ordinance also caps the number of licenses that will initially be issued at 20. But the state’s largest provider of medical marijuana, Wellness Connection of Maine, in June sued the city in federal court, claiming the criteria for awarding licenses unfairly favors Maine applicants.
Wellness Connection, which operates four of the state’s eight medical marijuana dispensaries, is owned by Acreage Holdings Inc. (CSE: ACRG.U), a Canadian company with U.S. headquarters in New York.
While the litigation is ongoing, Portland municipal staff are nevertheless preparing to process applications. They became available July 1, and can be found on the city’s website. When completed, applications should be emailed to marijuana@portlandmaine.gov. The application fee is $500, with fees of $5,000 to $10,000 for an approved license. Staff will submit bills for the application fee following review of the completed applications, the city said in a notice this week.
Maine’s 2016 Marijuana Legalization Act requires cannabis retailers to obtain state licensing, but gave municipalities the authority to regulate the operation of local marijuana businesses. To develop Portland’s rules, City Council committees obtained public, industry and staff input, and then presented recommendations to the council in February.
Once local authorization is obtained by a marijuana business, it must undergo a final review by state regulators. The Maine Office of Marijuana Policy plans to announce the fully licensed recreational-use marijuana businesses on Sept. 8, one month before recreational sales are allowed to begin on Oct. 9.
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