{"id":9624,"date":"2023-03-30T12:44:21","date_gmt":"2023-03-30T12:44:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.denverpost.com\/?p=5605346"},"modified":"2023-03-30T12:44:21","modified_gmt":"2023-03-30T12:44:21","slug":"nearly-a-decade-after-recreational-cannabis-sales-began-in-colorado-golden-takes-its-first-rip","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/nearly-a-decade-after-recreational-cannabis-sales-began-in-colorado-golden-takes-its-first-rip\/","title":{"rendered":"Nearly a decade after recreational cannabis sales began in Colorado, Golden takes its first rip"},"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\/nearly-a-decade-after-recreational-cannabis-sales-began-in-colorado-golden-takes-its-first-rip\/\" 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>GOLDEN \u2014 Seventeen months after <a href=\"https:\/\/www.denverpost.com\/2021\/11\/04\/colorado-election-marijuana-sales-westminster-lamar-golden\/\">voters in this city said yes to recreational cannabis sales<\/a> \u2014 and nearly a decade after the first retail joint and edible were sold in Colorado \u2014 this tourist-friendly city on the western fringe of the metro area is finally joining the pot party.<\/p>\n<p>Verts Neighborhood Dispensary, formerly Golden Alternative Medicine and the city\u2019s only medical marijuana shop, made its first recreational cannabis sale during a soft opening of the re-branded store this week.<\/p>\n<p>Verts formally opens its doors at 511 Orchard St. on April 5 with a ribbon-cutting at \u2014 wait for it \u2014 4:20 p.m.<\/p>\n<p>For co-owner Ashley Close, the transition to recreational sales was nothing less than a matter of survival, as the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.denverpost.com\/2022\/09\/13\/colorado-marijuana-sales-july-lowest-single-legalization\/\">medical side of the business in Colorado has slowed<\/a>\u00a0in recent years.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMedical in general is going consistently down,\u201d said Close, as an employee polished the windows of display cases inside the store Wednesday. \u201cIf we couldn\u2019t get the city of Golden to allow this, we would have to close down.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Verts will get a three to four-month head start on the competition \u2014 three other stores that got licenses to sell recreational weed in Golden aren\u2019t expected to open for business until the summer. Only four dispensaries are permitted in the city.<\/p>\n<p>What brought Golden to this moment was largely the result of what was going on around it.<\/p>\n<p>For the first half-decade after <a href=\"https:\/\/www.denverpost.com\/2014\/01\/01\/worlds-first-legal-recreational-marijuana-sales-begin-in-colorado\/\">legal sales began in Colorado in 2014<\/a>, Jefferson County remained mostly a dry county for marijuana. Wheat Ridge, Edgewater and Mountain View had embraced the industry, but the big cities like Littleton, Lakewood, Arvada and Westminster had not.<\/p>\n<p>That changed in 2020 when voters in both Littleton and Lakewood approved recreational sales.<\/p>\n<p>Dan Rowland, another Verts co-owner and former director of public affairs for Denver\u2019s Department of Excise &amp; Licenses and the city\u2019s Office of Marijuana Policy, said he and others in the industry started putting together a campaign for a citizen initiative to legalize sales in Golden.<\/p>\n<p>That move brought city leaders to the table.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe forced their hand,\u201d Rowland said.<\/p>\n<p>Steve Glueck, assistant to the city manager in Golden, said the city didn\u2019t want to lose control of the process.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe wanted to drive the bus \u2014 the city wanted to be in charge of what was going to happen,\u201d Glueck said.<\/p>\n<p>In April 2021, the city council referred two measures to the November ballot \u2014 one to permit sales and the other to impose a 6% city excise tax on marijuana transactions. Both passed, though the measure allowing sales <a href=\"https:\/\/results.enr.clarityelections.com\/CO\/Jefferson\/111057\/web.278093\/#\/summary\">squeaked through by only 54 votes<\/a> out of nearly 6,600 cast.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI remember waking up every 30 minutes that night as the totals were being updated and updated and updated,\u201d Close said of that election night nearly 17 months ago.<\/p>\n<p>But if anyone expects to see cannabis dispensaries popping up under the iconic \u201cHowdy folks! Welcome to Golden\u201d arch on Washington Street, think again. As part of the guardrails the city put in place, downtown Golden was made off-limits to pot shops as was the entire stretch of South Golden Road.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe people of Golden are very protective of downtown,\u201d Glueck said.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_5604064\" class=\"wp-caption alignright size-article_inline_half\"><img class=\"lazyautosizes lazyload\" src=\"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/nearly-a-decade-after-recreational-cannabis-sales-began-in-colorado-golden-takes-its-first-rip.jpg\" alt=\"Verts Neighborhood Dispensary in Golden on Tuesday, March 28, 2023. (Photo by Hyoung Chang\/The Denver Post)\" width=\"8256\" data-sizes=\"auto\" data-src=\"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/nearly-a-decade-after-recreational-cannabis-sales-began-in-colorado-golden-takes-its-first-rip.jpg\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/nearly-a-decade-after-recreational-cannabis-sales-began-in-colorado-golden-takes-its-first-rip.jpg 620w,https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.denverpost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/TDP-L-VertsNeighborhood032823-cha-431.jpg?fit=310%2C9999px&amp;ssl=1 310w\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Verts Neighborhood Dispensary in Golden on Tuesday, March 28, 2023. (Photo by Hyoung Chang\/The Denver Post)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The city identified five locations in Golden where a shop could locate, including an area north of downtown near State Highway 93 and in the Colfax Avenue corridor to the south. Verts sits near the junction of heavily used U.S. 6 and Interstate 70.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt doesn\u2019t need to be in your face \u2014 I get it,\u201d said Close about Golden\u2019s decision to exclude downtown. \u201cThat\u2019s common and expected.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Truman Bradley, executive director of the Marijuana Industry Group, said zoning cannabis businesses to more far-flung parts of town is nothing new in Colorado.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe often see this when communities first legalize,\u201d he said. \u201cThere is still work to be done to gain acceptance and continue shedding the decades-long stigma associated with marijuana. It\u2019s my hope that as businesses prove to be good neighbors that some of the restrictions go away. After all, marijuana is clearly safer than alcohol.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Bradley, a resident of Golden, said he\u2019s glad to see his city finally dip its toe in the water.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFor too long, Golden has been missing out on tax revenue as other residents and I have had to do our cannabis shopping elsewhere,\u201d he said. \u201cNow the tax money will be put to good use for Golden residents whether they voted for it or not.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_5604059\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter size-article_inline\"><img class=\"lazyautosizes lazyload\" src=\"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/nearly-a-decade-after-recreational-cannabis-sales-began-in-colorado-golden-takes-its-first-rip-1.jpg\" alt=\"Ashley Close prepares for the upcoming opening of Verts Neighborhood Dispensary in Golden on Tuesday, March 28, 2023. (Photo by Hyoung Chang\/The Denver Post)\" width=\"8256\" data-sizes=\"auto\" data-src=\"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/nearly-a-decade-after-recreational-cannabis-sales-began-in-colorado-golden-takes-its-first-rip-1.jpg\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/nearly-a-decade-after-recreational-cannabis-sales-began-in-colorado-golden-takes-its-first-rip-1.jpg 620w,https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.denverpost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/TDP-L-VertsNeighborhood032823-cha-041.jpg?fit=780%2C9999px&amp;ssl=1 780w,https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.denverpost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/TDP-L-VertsNeighborhood032823-cha-041.jpg?fit=810%2C9999px&amp;ssl=1 810w,https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.denverpost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/TDP-L-VertsNeighborhood032823-cha-041.jpg?fit=1280%2C9999px&amp;ssl=1 1280w,https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.denverpost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/TDP-L-VertsNeighborhood032823-cha-041.jpg?fit=1860%2C9999px&amp;ssl=1 1860w\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Ashley Close prepares for the upcoming opening of Verts Neighborhood Dispensary in Golden on Tuesday, March 28, 2023. (Photo by Hyoung Chang\/The Denver Post)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<aside class=\"related right\">\n<\/aside>\n<p>According to city estimates, Golden expects to collect $600,000 in marijuana excise tax revenue in 2024, the first year it will have all four shops open and selling. Glueck said the city will decide this summer where to direct those monies.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe potential range would include substance abuse, mental health programs, housing insecurity and food insecurity \u2014 those would be the top four,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>Close said she is wary as she opens her Golden store just as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.denverpost.com\/2022\/06\/28\/colorados-cannabis-marijuana-sales-drop-recession\/\">marijuana sales start to slow in Colorado<\/a>. The state set a record in 2021 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.denverpost.com\/2022\/02\/10\/colorado-marijuana-cannabis-record-sales-2021\/\">with more than $2.22 billion in sales<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s competitive \u2014 it\u2019s retail,\u201d she said. \u201cYou gotta stay competitive.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>But that hasn\u2019t dissuaded some from wondering when recreational weed can finally be had in Golden. During Tuesday night\u2019s city council meeting, Councilwoman JJ Trout said anticipation is high.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI have a friend texting for more than a year about when this is going to happen,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<p><em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.denverpost.com\/newsletters\">Want to get the latest marijuana news from around the country? Sign up for The Cannabist, our weekly newsletter, now.<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<div class=\"media_block\"><\/div>\n<p>Golden expects to collect $600,000 in marijuana excise tax revenue in 2024, the first year it will have all four shops open and selling. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[6834,5062,52,6811,1547,784,9423,6892,7938,77,5577,7816,6815,5667,6822,9,5019,441,6845,1,3,61,1736],"tags":[6836,5063,2632,6816,4115,3357,9424,6893,7939,2655,5580,7818,6820,5673,6824,5022,3015,6846],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9624"}],"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=9624"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9624\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9624"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9624"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9624"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}