{"id":9613,"date":"2023-03-01T13:42:52","date_gmt":"2023-03-01T13:42:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.denverpost.com\/?p=5569147"},"modified":"2023-03-01T13:42:52","modified_gmt":"2023-03-01T13:42:52","slug":"colorados-first-licensed-cannabis-consumption-bus-rolls-out-this-week","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/colorados-first-licensed-cannabis-consumption-bus-rolls-out-this-week\/","title":{"rendered":"Colorado\u2019s first licensed cannabis-consumption bus rolls out this week"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"wp_fb_like_button\" style=\"margin:5px 0 5px 5px;float:right;height:100px;\"><script src=\"http:\/\/connect.facebook.net\/en_US\/all.js#xfbml=1\"><\/script><fb:like href=\"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/colorados-first-licensed-cannabis-consumption-bus-rolls-out-this-week\/\" send=\"true\" layout=\"standard\" width=\"450\" show_faces=\"false\" font=\"arial\" action=\"like\" colorscheme=\"light\"><\/fb:like><\/div><div class=\"media_block\"><\/div>\n<p>Colorado\u2019s first legal cannabis party bus is preparing to roll up and roll out on the streets of Denver this week, offering shuttle services to and from the airport as well as curated tours of the city.<\/p>\n<p>The Cannabis Experience will debut its 12-passenger bus, decorated with flowers and other hippie iconography on the exterior and interior, after a test run on Wednesday with friends and family members of owners Sarah Woodson and Terrence Hewing. But they\u2019re <a href=\"http:\/\/420artclass.com\">already accepting reservations<\/a> for those seeking elevated transportation.<\/p>\n<p>Although other cannabis buses have operated in Colorado before, they weren\u2019t technically legal and all of them shut down or were forced to close by authorities. The Cannabis Experience, on the other hand, has a state-issued marijuana hospitality permit along with a license from the city.<\/p>\n<p>Still, Woodson and Hewing are taking things slowly since there are strict regulations for how the bus can operate. For example, Denver requires marijuana buses have a GPS tracking system and ventilation that prevents second-hand smoke from reaching the driver. They are also required to submit pre-planned driving routes as well as timely updates if the routes change. That\u2019s one reason The Cannabis Experience will start by picking up and dropping off airport travelers, as well as two of its tours, at Union Station.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBecause we\u2019re first, there\u2019s going to be a learning curve on how everything is going to work as smoothly as possible,\u201d Woodson said.<\/p>\n<p>The Cannabis Experience will be BYOB \u2013 bring your own bud \u2013 during curated tours such as Toking and Tacos, which will stop at several restaurants in a roughly two-hour timeframe, Woodson said. The company also plans to offer sightseeing tours of murals in the River North Art District and other local landmarks.<\/p>\n<p>Folks who want to book a ride downtown from Denver International Airport will be able to do so during a certain window of the day \u2014 and the bus will stop at a dispensary along the way to let customers shop. Woodson hopes to secure a dispensary partner soon.<\/p>\n<p>The vibe will be \u201cthe full, I\u2019m back and ready to have some fun on my way home type of consumption,\u201d she added. \u201cWe\u2019re excited about that because it\u2019s never existed before.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>No matter the shuttle service, each ride begins with an ID check to ensure patrons are over 21 and a quick lesson in responsible consumption, Woodson said.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_4551290\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter size-article_inline\"><img class=\"lazyautosizes lazyload\" src=\"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/colorados-first-licensed-cannabis-consumption-bus-rolls-out-this-week.jpg\" alt=\"Sarah Woodson poses for a portrait ...\" width=\"2000\" data-sizes=\"auto\" data-src=\"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/colorados-first-licensed-cannabis-consumption-bus-rolls-out-this-week.jpg\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/colorados-first-licensed-cannabis-consumption-bus-rolls-out-this-week.jpg 620w,https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.denverpost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Marijuana-Social_Equity_07499.jpg?fit=780%2C9999px&amp;ssl=1 780w,https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.denverpost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Marijuana-Social_Equity_07499.jpg?fit=810%2C9999px&amp;ssl=1 810w,https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.denverpost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Marijuana-Social_Equity_07499.jpg?fit=1280%2C9999px&amp;ssl=1 1280w,https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.denverpost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Marijuana-Social_Equity_07499.jpg?fit=1860%2C9999px&amp;ssl=1 1860w\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Sarah Woodson is chief operating officer of The Cannabis Experience, which is Colorado\u2019s first legal party on which patrons can smoke weed. She is also the executive director of the advocacy group The Color of Cannabis and runs a 10-week business course to help students navigate Colorado\u2019s social equity application process and to connect them with marijuana industry leaders. (Photo by Thomas Peipert, The Associated Press)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>As The Cannabis Experience fleet grows, so too will its offerings. Woodson aims to one day have a fleet of 10 canna-buses shuttling enthusiasts to marijuana grows and other attractions in Denver and its neighboring suburbs, as local regulations permit.<\/p>\n<h4>Previous buses doobie-ously operating<\/h4>\n<p>Although marijuana tour buses cropped up when recreational sales began here nearly a decade ago, they weren\u2019t doing so legally. In 2018, for example, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.denverpost.com\/2018\/09\/29\/denver-crackdown-on-marijuana-tour-buses\/\">undercover cops raided local marijuana tour buses<\/a> and cited many customers and employees for participating in unlawful activities. At the time, ironically, city regulators were considering legalizing the business model.<\/p>\n<p>The conundrum highlighted a gap in Colorado\u2019s then-newly minted marijuana market: Locals and visitors had a plethora of places where they could legally buy products, but nowhere except a private residence they could legally consume.<\/p>\n<p>That\u2019s why, in 2019, <a href=\"https:\/\/leg.colorado.gov\/bills\/hb19-1230\">state regulators<\/a> developed the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.denverpost.com\/2019\/12\/27\/denver-places-to-smoke-weed-public-social-use\/\">marijuana hospitality license<\/a>, which allowed for a new type of business where patrons could smoke, eat or vape cannabis onsite. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.denverpost.com\/2022\/01\/30\/denver-businesses-seek-hospitality-licenses-to-let-patrons-smoke-weed\/\">Hospitality establishments have been slow to get off the ground<\/a>, however, as municipalities need to opt in to allow them. The first chance cities had to do so was Jan. 1, 2020, but because of the COVID-19 pandemic, few did so immediately. Denver didn\u2019t open applications until November 2021.<\/p>\n<p>Prior to now, cannabis enthusiasts could openly consume at just two places in Denver County, <a href=\"https:\/\/thecoffeejointco.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The Coffee Joint<\/a> in Lincoln Park and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tetralounge.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Tetra Lounge<\/a> in RiNo.<\/p>\n<p>The Coffee Joint is connected to a dispensary and only allows patrons to vape or eat edibles.<\/p>\n<p>When it opened in 2018, Tetra Lounge allowed patrons to smoke cannabis indoors because it operated as a private club, charging membership fees. That designation enabled it to sidestep the Colorado Clean Indoor Air Act, which banned smoking in most public, indoor spaces. However, when the city of Denver opted to allow marijuana hospitality, the business was required to apply for the new license \u2014 and meet the building codes that go along with it.<\/p>\n<p>Tetra Lounge is currently closed to upgrade its ventilation system to permit smoking inside, owner Dewayne Benjamin said.<\/p>\n<p>Otherwise, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.denverpost.com\/2022\/05\/18\/photos-jads-mile-high-smoke-marijuana-bar-lounge\/\">JAD\u2019s Mile High Smoke<\/a> in Adams County sells cannabis products that patrons can consume onsite, including flower, beverages, concentrates and more. And the Patterson Inn, a Capitol Hill bed-and-breakfast, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.denverpost.com\/2021\/12\/17\/patterson-inn-denver-marijuana-smoking-lounge\/\">is building a smoking lounge onsite<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019re excited for the fact the one thing that\u2019s been missing in Denver\u2019s market for legalized marijuana are places for people to consume legally,\u201d said Eric Escudero, spokesperson for Denver Excise and Licenses. \u201cAssuming [The Cannabis Experience] is up and running soon, it will be the first place in Denver history where you can legally smoke flower.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Woodson and Hewing used to host classes \u2014 paint-and-smoke and sushi-and-spliff-rolling, but they had to put them on hold when Denver moved to allow marijuana hospitality businesses since they would have needed a permanent location to abide by the rules. They\u2019d like to restart the classes, by finding a good location is\u00a0easier said than done, Woodson pointed out.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe required distance between a hospitality lounge and daycare is 1,000 feet, and Denver has tons of daycares,\u201d she explained. That\u2019s before taking into account that about 70% of the city is ineligible for businesses of any kind because of residential zoning restrictions.<\/p>\n<p>In addition, the cost of opening such a space is immense, Woodson added, especially for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.denverpost.com\/2020\/01\/30\/social-equity-colorado-cannabis\/\">social equity applicants<\/a> like herself and her husband.<\/p>\n<p>State law initially prohibited convicted felons like Hewing, who was convicted of a felony marijuana charge prior to legalization, from procuring a license to grow, manufacture or sell cannabis for up to 10 years \u2013 even after having served the consequences.<\/p>\n<aside class=\"related right\">\n<\/aside>\n<p>But in 2020, regulators moved to rectify this disparity and acknowledge \u201cthe effects of decades of criminal enforcement of marijuana laws on communities of color\u201d by offering additional resources to locals who meet <a href=\"https:\/\/sbg.colorado.gov\/med\/social-equity\">their definition of social equity<\/a>. In Denver, most new marijuana business licenses are available exclusively to social equity applicants until July 2027.<\/p>\n<p>Eventually, Wood and Hewing hope to open a brick-and-mortar business, but in the meantime, the Cannabis Experience could help them raise money while offering a service for both locals and tourists. An airport ride costs $100, while a tour costs $69. The bus will also sell snacks and CBD-infused beverages.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe want people to understand it\u2019s safe, licensed and legal, and getting us to what legalization should be about,\u201d Woodson said. \u201cI\u2019m excited and proud we\u2019re at the forefront of that movement.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.denverpost.com\/newsletter-signup\/in-the-know\">Subscribe to our weekly newsletter, In The Know, to get entertainment news sent straight to your inbox.<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<div class=\"media_block\"><\/div>\n<p>Colorado\u2019s first legal cannabis party bus is preparing to roll up and roll out on the streets of Denver, offering shuttle services to and from Denver International Airport as well as curated tours throughout the Mile High City. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[9312,9313,5062,52,330,6811,376,7532,7170,2435,7938,4995,77,5577,7816,6933,6815,6886,6921,9,5019,5236,8311,6228,1,3,6488,7072,6923,7508,2509,9314,61,1736,7766],"tags":[9315,9316,5063,2632,2908,6816,2954,7533,7171,2436,7939,4996,2655,5580,7818,6934,6820,6889,6922,5022,5238,8312,6235,6495,7073,6924,7510,2402,9317,7781],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9613"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9613"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9613\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9613"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9613"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9613"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}