Medical Marijuana Dispensary Could Come To Union County

UNION COUNTY, NJ — A medical marijuana dispensary may be coming to Union County.

Verano NJ LLC is one of six businesses that will be invited to open a dispensary in the state, the New Jersey Department of Health announced Monday. The dispensary would be in Elizabeth while the cultivation site would be in Rahway.

The other dispensaries would be located in Phillipsburg, Paterson, Ewing, Atlantic City, and Vineland.

A six-person committee of four DOH representatives and one person each from the Departments of Agriculture and Treasury chose the six finalists from 146 applications. The final six provide evidence of a dispensary location and municipal approval, and comply with all safety and security regulations.

"Six very strong applicants were selected, including minority-owned and women-owned businesses,"said state Health Commissioner Dr. Shereef Elnahal said. "We are committed to an equitable expansion of supply to meet growing patient demand, and these new locations will reach patients that currently have to travel longer distances to obtain the therapy."

Elnahal said officials will meet with the six businesses early next year to "refine their timetable for growing product and opening their doors."

The Department of Health will make all 146 applications available for public review on their webpage next year. The winning applications will be posted first.

With reporting by Eric Kiefer, Patch staff

(Image via Shutterstock)

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