First Blackowned “Detroit Legacy” Recreational Marijuana Business Opens

(CBS DETROIT) – Detroit Legacy's first recreational marijuana store celebrated its opening over the weekend as part of the city's social justice program.

Black-owned pharmacy Nuggets Cannabis Co. is located at 18270 The Telegraph and is run by longtime Detroiter Louis Redden and his aunt Camilla Hicks. Detroit Legacy licensees mean that at least 51% of the property is certified as a long-term resident of Detroit, having lived in the city for at least 15 of the past 30 years.

"I originally started as a healthcare provider, but we are honored to have the opportunity to open one of the first vacation destinations in Detroit," said Rudden. “When we look for opportunities in the metro area, we always know we want to come home. The cannabis industry has provided many people in our community with good employment opportunities. I'm 100% proud of it, our employees at the Telegraph Store are from Detroit.”

Michigan voters approved recreational use of cannabis in 2018; But in early 2022, the city passed a recreation day nabis ordinance.

Board President Pro-Tem James Tait, who was instrumental in promoting the retail licenses, said the regulations are intended to provide housing options for residents .

"This is an exciting time in Detroit for adults with cannabis. Just a few months ago, we saw Judge Friedman rule against an injunction that would once again prevent Detroit from moving forward with our current adult marijuana regulations, Tate said in a statement. "I'm proud to open the door for Detroiters for years to come and I'm excited to welcome the Detroit Legacy Nuggets licensee to D1 because of the hard work we've done."

Nuggets is one of 20 equity applicants to receive retail licenses in December 2022. The city also issued licenses to 13 non-equity applicants after a two-month evaluation and review process by the Office of Marijuana and Marijuana Enterprises.

According to the city, an equity applicant is a person whose primary residence is in a disproportionately affected area.

As of Monday, the city has issued 34 retail licenses for grown marijuana.

"This isn't happening everywhere. We've been fighting to empower Detroiters for a long time to build businesses in the marijuana industry, which has a disproportionately negative impact on communities of color," said Deputy Mayor Todd Bettison in a press release. action is taken to oppose the criminalization that many of our citizens have endured for years.