Call & Times

Mass. issues final pot sales licenses

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BOSTON (AP) — Marijuana regulators issued final hoping within weeks to open the first commercial pot shops in Massachuse­tts.

The Cannabis Control Commission on Thursday voted 4-0 to issue the licenses to Cultivate Holdings in Leicester and New England Treatment Access in Northampto­n. Both companies operate medical marijuana dispensari­es at those locations and had earlier been granted provisiona­l licenses by the commission to sell recreation­al marijuana.

“I think we’re weeks away,” said Steven Hoffman, chairman of the commission, noting there were still several procedural steps that must be taken before the stores receive permission to begin selling to the public.

“I think it’s a big milestone, but you know it’s going to be an even bigger one when the stores actually open,” he said.

Massachuse­tts voters legalized recreation­al marijuana for adults in November 2016, but nearly two years later there is still no place in the state to legally purchase the drug. The slow rollout has frustrated both consumers and cannabis businesses seeking a foothold in what is viewed as a potentiall­y lucrative market.

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