During the first month of sales, Treehouse Dispensary has seen its customer base grow rapidly. It has taken a few turns along the way, but Seth Marks is thrilled to finally have his adult-use cannabis retail business open. He and his team are preparing to welcome people through the doors of their new home in Nyack Village, at a glass building that used to house Palisades Auto Sales.

Treehouse Dispensary few Rockland County municipalities to embrace allowing marijuana dispensaries and lounges. Most of the county opted out, but Nyack, Haverstraw, Piermont and a few other Ramapo villages embraced the idea. They hoped the businesses would boost local economic growth and allow them to compete with dispensaries in neighboring towns.

Exploring DC Weed Dispensaries: Your Guide to Cannabis in the Capital

It took about a year for the state to approve applications for the 28 dispensary licenses it has awarded so far. The majority of the dispensaries have been approved for a special certification to sell recreational marijuana called a CAURD license, which gives preference to applicants who say they were discriminated against by years of marijuana prohibitions or by biased enforcement during incarceration.

The other licenses have been granted to companies that can demonstrate they’ve created a safe environment and are using high-quality products. Those companies will be the first to open. The state hopes more than 50 of them will open by April 20, which is known as “420.” Until then, consumers can buy legal marijuana online through sites like this and at stores that have gotten the OK from the state to sell it.