Newton's First Recreational Marijuana Shop To Open May 25

NEWTON, MA — Garden Remedies, which has been a medical marijuana dispensary since 2016, will start selling recreational marijuana this week. The grand opening for recreational marijuana sales will be Saturday, the business announced today.

"We have been working for years to achieve adult use cannabis sales in Newton—a dream that is now becoming a reality, and we are determined to continue to be good neighbors here in Newton," said Garden Remedies Founder Dr. Karen Munkacy in a statement. "This is tremendously meaningful to me, as a breast cancer survivor and long-time legalization advocate, because it is my deep-held conviction that adult access to this powerful, natural remedy should be a right, not a privilege."

The announcement comes after the dispensary cleared the final state regulatory inspection hurdle and got the go-ahead Tuesday. Still, there will be no storming the gates on Day 1. You'll have to have an appointment to get in.

Garden Remedies is the 16th adult-use retail establishment to open in the Commonwealth and the second in Greater Boston. In March, a medical marijuana dispensary expanded to offer recreational pot on the corner of Boylston Street and Washington Street in Brookline Village. While the town was concerned about possible long lines and traffic there, opening week went without issue. >> Smooth Rollout: Boston Area's First Pot Shop Opens Without Crazy Traffic

Unlike in Brookline, where New England Treatment Access dispensary opened to adult use recreational sales recently and allowed walk-ups, there will be no walk ups permitted in Newton.

Newton Mayor Fuller said representatives from Newton police, law department, transportation, health and human services and planning departments are working together to ensure an "orderly and safe opening," here.

What was the final hurdle?

After the Cannabis Control Commission gives a final license commission investigators inspect the marijuana establishment to ensure the facility, operations, security protocols, and marijuana and marijuana products comply with the laws and regulations of the Commonwealth. Marijuana establishment inventory must be properly tagged and uploaded into the required seed-to-sale tracking system, Metrc. Commission staff then confirm certain conditions placed on the license have been met (see p. 5 of Garden Remedies' executive summary for example). Then, once the marijuana establishment agents are registered and properly badged, the commission will issue a notice to commence full operations.

Things to know:

• You must be at least 21 years old with a valid government ID (and bring it)
• Make an appointment ahead of time online: at gardenremedies.com starting at (ahem) 4:20 p.m. Wednesday, May 22.
• Take public transportation or ride share, street parking is extremely limited
• No walk ins allowed, this is by appointment only.
• They'll be open Monday - Thursday 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., Friday and Saturday until 9 p.m.
• Garden Remedies has hired extra security and Newton Police officers for detail and traffic help

How to get there:

Officials are encouraging visitors to take public transportation or ride shares to keep traffic from getting too crazy.

Commuter rail: The Newtonville commuter rail is across the street and runs from South Station to Worcester.

Bus: There are also several bus routes (553, 554 and 556) with nearby stops on Washington at Harvard Street and at Court Street. There's also a bike rack on-site, and Lime bikes available for pick-up and drop-off nearby.

Pot is legal in Massachusetts

In 2016, about 54 percent of Newton voters supported the statewide ballot measure that legalized marijuana. Marijuana is legal for adults over the age of 21 in 10 states, including Massachusetts. Medical marijuana is legal in 33. That said: the federal government still classifies marijuana as a "schedule 1 drug," listing it as high potential for abuse.

In 2018 Newton voters rejected a proposed ban on recreational marijuana shops. They also poo pooed limiting the number of shops to 2-4, according to unofficial Election Night results. Newton now has eight licenses to give out, one of which Garden Remedies has. Anther is for Cypress Tree Management on Eliot Street, which isn't likely to open for a few months.

What does the city get out of this?

Garden Remedies will be providing the city with 3 percent of both medical and recreational sales revenue, which may be used for a variety of programs in a variety of departments to work on the issue, according to the agreement with the city.

In the fiscal year ending June 2018, Newton earned $16,708 from Garden Remedies sales, according to city data. By January 30, it added another $91,065, according to city data.

The company also agreed to pay at least $2,500 to charities or non-profits based in Newton each year.

"Garden Remedies is committed to addressing Massachusetts-wide social issues for communities and individuals and in the past has donated to a combination of causes in Newton, including Myrtle Baptist Church and the Newton Food Pantry," said a spokesperson for the company in an email to Patch.

Pros and cons of marijuana?

Although the state and Newton voted to legalize pot, as with almost anything, there are arguments for and against its use. Here, a non-profit non-partisan group outlines a few of the pros and cons.

Previous Patch coverage:

• Garden Remedies Could Open Retail Marijuana Soon: Newton Mayor (February)
• Newton's Garden Remedies Could Sell Recreational Marijuana Next Month (April)
• What's Next For Marijuana Shops In Newton, Ban Question Fails
• 2nd Medical Marijuana Site To Come To Newton
• Newton Passes Temporary Ban on Recreational Marijuana
• marijuana taxes in Newton estimated to range from $291k-$700k

Patch reporter Jenna Fisher can be reached at Jenna.Fisher@patch.com or by calling 617-942-0474. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram (@ReporterJenna).