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It takes a Village to get stoned.
Greenwich Village is the hottest neighborhood for wannabe legal pot dealers, with dozens filing applications in recent weeks to open up dispensaries in the neighborhood.
A Post survey of Big Apple community boards found paperwork for at least 460 pot permit applications has been filed since Oct. 4, including a staggering 77 entries in Community Board 2, which comprises neighborhoods such as Greenwich Village, Soho and Chinatown.
“There’s New York University, and with the students, it’s easy money — and obviously this neighborhood has money,” Muhammed Akmal, 51, owner of New University Pen & Stationery, told The Post.
Other neighborhoods targeted by wannabe pot sellers include Midtown, with at least 41 applications; Williamsburg and Greenpoint in Brooklyn, with 35; and the Upper East Side, with 25 — although community board staffers noted some of the permit requests had already been withdrawn or have issues that will prevent them from being greenlit.
Greenwich Village is being eyed by dozens of entrepreneurs looking to open up legal dispensaries.ststoev – stock.adobe.com
Paperwork for at least 460 pot permit applications to open dispensaries in the city has been filed since Oct. 4. Stefano Giovannini
The deluge of pot license applications has come now that Albany opened up the process to the general public, with plans to award licenses next year.
Previously, only those with drug-related criminal convictions and their relatives could apply for a permit, as could nonprofits who served convicts or those who were formerly incarcerated.
The Empire State has bungled its legal weed rollout, which began last December, with only 11 licensed dispensaries having opened in the city as an estimated 1,500 illicit smoke shops continue to choke off their sanctioned competition.
The deluge of pot license applications has come now that Albany opened up the process to the general public. Polaris
Despite a $20,000-a-day fine and new efforts to ramp up enforcement, many shady retailers continue to freely sell their wares, leaving Village locals smoldering over the prospect of more dispensaries to come.
“I support the idea as a whole, but I don’t want our neighborhood turned into ‘Weedtown,’” cried Sarah Raffetto, 33, who co-owns the longstanding pasta shop Raffetto’s on Houston Street.
“It’s becoming like the next iteration of Starbucks where they’re everywhere,” she said.
The Empire State has bungled its legal market rollout, with only 11 licensed marijuana dispensaries opening in the city since December.Stefano Giovannini
David Gruber, head of the Carmine Street Block Association, pleaded for lawmakers and the state’s Office of Cannabis Management to consider capping how many dispensaries can be licensed to open in a district.
“We’re a historic neighborhood with a lot of residences, and the state has to be smart in the distribution of legal licenses, if that’s what they want to do,” he said.