To date. 137 marijuana dispensaries are open statewide. That’s the latest news from New York’s Cannabis Advisory Board, and more expansion is planned, with hundreds of licenses still pending approval.
The board says ensuring equity and community reinvestment is the big draw of opening dispensaries across the state.
The expansion has gone hand in hand with a crackdown on illegal weed shops: 240 inspections have been conducted by the state, resulting in more than 3200 pounds of illegal cannabis seized, valued at nearly $30 million. So far, 143 illegal stores in New York State have been padlocked. State officials say this has led to a 27% increase in legal cannabis sales.
