After 3 Cannabis Dispensaries Apply To Open In Hoboken, City Responds

HOBOKEN, NJ — Hoboken's relatively new Cannabis Review Board will hear three applications Thursday from people who want to open dispensaries in different spots in the mile-square city.

All three of the applicants are seeking a retail cannabis license rather than a medical cannabis license.

(Several medical marijuana dispensaries had already applied separately to open.)

According to Thursday's agenda, the sites are at 51-53 Fourteenth St., 128 Washington St., and 516 Washington St.

On Wednesday, city spokesperson Marilyn Baer responded to a question of whether the mayor had a position on the matter:

"As determined through the City Council's unanimous adoption [of an ordinance], which was preceded by a lengthy community process, cannabis retailers have been approved as a use in business and industrial districts," she said.

She added, "The Cannabis Review Board as well as the Planning Board will review all applications for consideration based on their merits and consistency with municipal code, with members of the public welcome to provide input during their open public hearings. Should applicants be approved and receive a state license, they will be required to follow strict building code enforcement."

She noted, "All approved cannabis retailers will also be providing the city with additional tax revenue through the cannabis transfer tax."

The Cannabis Review Board is comprised of three people: The mayor's designee, a council member chosen by the council, and Health and Human Services Director Leo Pellegrini.

Opening At Restaurant Sites

The agenda includes links to two neighborhood impact reports with the applications. The applicant for 128 Washington St., which is currently Precious, a Chinese restaurant, wrote:

"The proposed project will occupy the ground floor of existing mixed-use building currently occupied by a restaurant with a state-approved adult use cannabis dispensary ... The dispensary will operate from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. on days permitted."

Councilwoman Tiffanie Fisher, in a Tuesday email blast to let the neighbors know, said these facilities may allow use on-site use.

"The Cannabis Review Board is just one of many steps required before a dispensary can open," Fisher noted. "If Hoboken’s CRB approves it, then it still has to go to through the Hoboken Planning Board, where the public has another opportunity to be heard."

She added, "Nothing can happen until a license is approved by the state – a process that, according to this article, doesn’t start until March 15 and favors equity applications and impact areas first. That said, it could be as early as this summer/fall when these dispensaries, if approved, could be open."

On Thursday, in an update, Fisher said, "Of the just over 70 emails I received so far, about 90 percent have expressed opposition to these dispensaries."

Fisher encouraged interested parties to join the Zoom meeting Thursday at 7 here.

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