Cannabis companies and brokers are rushing into what could be a $4.2 billion industry, but for all the excitement, there are significant challenges.
It has been only five weeks since New York State legalized the use of recreational marijuana. The board that will oversee the rollout has yet to be appointed, let alone rules set for how licenses will be issued to cannabis businesses. The sale of legal pot in the state is still a year away. And, of course, marijuana remains illegal on the federal level.
But already the rush is on to get a piece of what could be a $4.2 billion industry in the Empire State.
Brokers are talking to landlords about leasing storefronts to dispensaries. Representatives of out-of-state cannabis businesses are flying in to scope out properties. And suppliers of medical marijuana are expanding in the hope that they will be able to branch into recreational sales.
Agricultural land upstate is now marketed as being “in the green zone” for hemp farming or the construction of grow houses for cultivating marijuana.
“It’s a land grab,” said Gregory Tannor, a principal at Lee & Associates NYC, a brokerage that has been conferring with New York City landlords since November and has already lined up nearly 200 possible locations for dispensaries.
But for all the excitement, there are significant challenges in cannabis real estate. [Read More @ The NY Times]
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