Legal cannabis goes on sale in Delco within 6 months
UPPER DARBY » Delaware County is set to house two dispensaries announced Tuesday in the initial medicinal marijuana rollouts in the burgeoning cannabis industry in Pennsylvania.
They will now have six months to begin operations.
Per the outlines signed by Gov. Tom Wolf in April, Act 16 laid the groundwork for two grower/processors per region and 10 dispensary permits for the Southeast region.
Delaware County was given a single primary permit, which grants the permit holder three total locations; however the second and third location must be in a different county than the first, but remain in the region of origin.
AES Compassionate Care LLC was awarded the primary permit for Delaware County and will open Grassroots Cannabis at 130 S. State Road in Upper Darby.
The principal on the LLC filing is Audrey Selin, an attorney based in Chicago, Il. who works in the law group Neal, Gerber & Eisenberg LLP.
Selin was reached by phone Thursday but declined comment.
Last week, AES Compassionate Care LLC was also awarded a grower/processor permit for a grow house in 1086 Wayne Ave. in Chambersburg, Franklin County.
Keystone Dispensaries will host a primary dispensary in Chester County at 420 W. Lancaster Ave. in Devon; a secondary location will be at 622 Industrial Park Drive in Yeadon; and a third in Montgomery County at 120 Hansen Access Road in King of Prussia.
Dr. M. Louis van de Beek, the principal for Chamounix Ventures Inc., the limited liability company that will operate the three Keystone Dispensaries, was reached by phone Thursday.
“I think beyond a shadow of a doubt that medical marijuana has helped many patients, specifically with children who have refractory seizures. The treatments seem to work where traditional therapies have failed,” van de Beek said.
The family medical doctor, whose practice is located in the Port Richmond section of Philadelphia, said because of his interest in the dispensary he’s disqualified from prescribing medical marijuana to patients. He said he’ll work in the capacity of medical director for Keystone Dispensaries, concerned with the medical guidelines of the facility.
“Medical marijuana will give doctors another tool in their toolkit in treating patients,” van de Beek said, adding that it will aid in stopping the trend of prescribing the volume in which doctors give opioid-based medication. “The state will see great benefits from this.”
Applying for a dispensary permit requires a $5,000 non-refundable application fee, as well as additional $30,000 fee, which is refunded if the application is rejected. Applicants also have to show proof of $150,000 in capital.
The Pennsylvania Office of Medical Marijuana received 280 permit applications for dispensaries.