2 Cannabis Businesses In Montclair Will Be Located In Same Building

MONTCLAIR, NJ — Two proposed cannabis businesses in Montclair saw big milestones at council and planning board meetings this week, and they’re both located in the same building: TLEHL Inc. and Genuine Grow.

The Montclair Planning Board gathered for a public meeting on Monday, April 24 to discuss several items, including a cannabis-related application from TLEHL Inc. for a manufacturing facility at 154 Pine Street.

The board gave a final green light to the business, which has already received a micro-license from the state cannabis board and the Montclair Town Council. It will take cannabis and turn it into secondary materials, such as tinctures, topicals and pre-rolled joints. Read More: Montclair Awards Its First Cannabis Manufacturing License

See the application and other materials for the business here, and watch the meeting video below, which includes testimony from the business owner and attorney.

• See Related: Treevana Seeks To Bring Cannabis Dispensary To Montclair

GENUINE GROW GETS LICENSE FROM TOWN

On Tuesday, the Montclair Town Council approved a conditional municipal Class 1/Category F, Cannabis Cultivator License for Genuine Grow (watch the video below).

The business is planning to launch a micro-cultivation business to grow cannabis at 154 Pine Street, the same location as TLEHL Inc. The business would operate seven days a week, and have two to six employees on duty at any given time. Read More: Proposed Marijuana Grow Business In Montclair Takes Leap Forward

Microbusinesses are limited in scope under state law, and can possess no more than 1,000 mature cannabis plants each month. There are plans in place for odor control and security, and the facility won’t be open to the general public, the application states. There will be no consumption of marijuana allowed on site.

Upon an award of a conditional license, Genuine Grow must obtain a conditional use permit from the planning board before building permits can be issued for cannabis cultivator use, the resolution approving its license notes.

The company’s owner, Andrew Marshall, who grew up in Montclair, previously shared some plans for the business with Patch:

“At 154 Pine Street, we plan to occupy a small space in the back of the building for growing high quality and organic cannabis. That cannabis will then be sold to other local licensed retailers and manufacturers. Montclair collects a 2% tax on all transactions between my business and other retailers or manufacturers. If all goes to plan, I would anticipate being able to have plants growing by the beginning of Q1 2024. We would be hiring local individuals interested in working in the cannabis industry. We also will be working with REED Autism Services who will be helping us employ local adults who are on the autism spectrum as Genuine Grow employees.”

Montclair is home to one of the state's first medical marijuana dispensaries, Ascend, formerly known as Greenleaf. Ascend began selling recreational cannabis to adult customers in 2022.
Under the town’s current law, here is the maximum number of cannabis licenses (and what type) Montclair can issue:

• Retail – 3
• Delivery Service – 3
• Wholesale – 1
• Distributor – 1
• Manufacturer – 1
• Cultivator – 1

Montclair Councilman Peter Yacobellis issued a statement about the two cannabis businesses after Tuesday's meeting.

"Tonight we issued a conditional class 1 cannabis cultivator license to Genuine Grow, LLC owned by local resident Andrew Marshall," Yacobellis said. "This is the third cannabis license we’ve issued. We’ve now issued one retail, one manufacturing and one cultivation. We anticipate issuing two additional retail licenses in May."

"I want to congratulate Andrew Marshall for all of his hard work and due diligence to get to this point, and for his patience," Yacobellis added. "Genuine Grow will now join manufacturer TLEHL Inc., who we issued a manufacturing license to in March, at 154 Pine Street. I’m excited to see how these businesses collaborate and ignite this new industry in our town which will add jobs and diversify tax revenue. I’m also thrilled we were able to give this to a local resident over a big conglomerate. It makes me proud to see us investing in our own."

Send local news tips and correction requests to eric.kiefer@patch.com. Learn more about advertising on Patch here. Find out how to post announcements or events to your local Patch site. Don’t forget to visit the Patch Montclair Facebook page.