Few applications submitted for NKY's medical marijuana licenses ahead of deadline
FLORENCE, Ky. (WKRC) - With the deadline for applying to open a medical marijuana business in Kentucky fast approaching, there are fewer applications than there are slots available for dispensaries in the Northern Kentucky region.
The deadline to apply for a dispensary, cultivator, or grower license is August 31, but the state has only received two applications for dispensaries, even though there are plans to hand out four such licenses for the nine-county Northern Kentucky region.
Elizabeth Kirby has owned and operated Your CBD Store in Florence for five years and is considering putting in an application to run a medical marijuana dispensary in Boone County. But she's got reservations, including a $5,000 non-refundable application fee, competition from larger companies, finding a suitable location, and whether she'll even be allowed to operate there.
"And I haven't run a dispensary before. So, I have to seek outside advice on how to put all that together. It's a little overwhelming,” Kirby said.
Even with the deadline approaching, medical marijuana advocate Matthew Bratcher said he's not worried.
"And this is a process where people need to check all their boxes three or four times to make sure everything's correct and to avoid having a deficient application,” said Executive Director of the Kentucky branch of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws Bratcher. “So, I say by the time this, you know, the deadline approaches, we're going to see a mass influx of applications."
One of the unknowns for anyone considering applying is whether the local jurisdiction will even allow dispensaries. Florence is one of seven Northern Kentucky cities where leaders recently decided to put this issue before voters in November. Three other cities, including Newport and Covington, passed ordinances allowing it.
Covington Vice Mayor Ron Washington said that competition from Ohio, which now allows both medical and recreational marijuana sales, could also be driving down applications.
"So, I don't know that if an entrepreneur were looking at this if they would find it lucrative enough to open in the city,” Washington said.
The small number of Northern Kentucky applications has Kirby still considering applying for a dispensary license, however.
"We haven't ruled it out,” Kirby said. “We're back and forth about it."
There have been 129 medical marijuana dispensary applications for 48 spots statewide in Kentucky. After the August 31 deadline, the state will then give applicants a month to fix any mistakes or amend their documents. Then the lottery happens in early October, and medical cards will start being issued to individuals after January 1.
If a business gets a license approved but then a jurisdiction bans medical sales, they can apply to move to a different location. When sales begin early next year, Kentucky will become the 37th state, along with the District of Columbia, to have legalized medical cannabis.
Beginning on January 1, those suffering from the following conditions can apply for a Kentucky medical marijuana card:
Any type or form of cancer
Chronic or severe pain
Epilepsy or other intractable seizure disorders
Multiple sclerosis
Chronis nausea or cyclical vomiting syndrome
PTSD
