If you’re among the many who have daydreamed about Amsterdam-style cafes here in the Hudson Valley with the opportunity to consume cannabis in a commercial space—well, it looks like it’s going to be a while.
Since the rollout of cannabis legalization in New York, those working in the industry are usually the first to tell you that the journey has been marred with setbacks, from rushed application deadlines to delayed approvals and fluctuating expectations. It’s gotten to the point where the Office of Cannabis Management (OCM), which governs all of New York State, is hesitant to even give an estimate of when the next phase of the rollout will occur—that phase being legally approved consumption in commercial spaces: bars, restaurants, lounges, and the like. Although the application deadline was at the end of 2023, more than halfway through 2025 the OCM says there is no estimated date in sight for the process to be finalized, citing concerns about regulations for public health and safety as a main factor. But it isn’t just consumers who are impacted and impatient.
“One of the biggest challenges with not knowing when this next phase will be legalized is that people who applied for their license over a year ago are still waiting to hear if they’ve even been approved,” explains Tamika Dunkley, who is involved in the regional cannabis industry as an OCM-approved technical assistance partner, and has helped several dispensaries and microbusinesses to navigate the complex process of applying and maintaining regulations. She is also the cofounder of the Cannabis Roll Call, a quarterly networking event that brings together stakeholders across the industry for education and networking. “What we’re seeing is that many people who applied and then sought out buildings so that they’d be ready to open their business once approved, have now been paying rent for nearly two years on a viable space for a business they can’t open. They’re just waiting it out without knowing: Is there a six-month plan? A two-year plan? The OCM is being cautious about giving any promises or expectations about a timeline because of how many delays have occurred so far.”
Why the Holdup?
From the start, the OCM has expressed the need for meticulous attention to detail when rolling out legalization; after all, it’s an industry that has gone from nonexistent (or, completely underground), to generating a billion dollars for the state in less than two years. At the same time, internal turnover within the office, and the state’s promised dedication to social equity initiatives, have each created their own unanticipated delays.
“New York has done well with keeping to their social equity commitment; the numbers don’t lie and the state has more Black, brown, and women-owned cannabis businesses than any other state. But the rollouts have been intense,” Dunkley says. “I think that for consumption lounges, if they collaborated with other governing authorities like the New York State Liquor Authority, which regulates a similar industry, they could’ve been provided with input toward creating safe public consumption lounges a little faster. Instead, they started from the ground up—it’s been a challenge for them and frustrating for applicants. I see it when I provide technical assistance, too—even when people can get through the paperwork, they still don’t know what to expect.”
The delay in consumption lounge rollout seems to stem from two distinct concerns: for one, applications for licenses are still in review. Two, the OCM wants to ensure they leave no stone unturned in terms of public health and safety.
“Our application window ended December 2023 and we divided the more-than 7,000 applications we received into two cohorts: the November queue and the December queue,” explains John Kagia, the OCM’s Director of Policy. “As of June this year, we were still reviewing the November queue. We are reviewing as much as we can, but we received such a large number of applications across the entire supply chain that it’s still going to take time, and we ask that people please continue to be patient with us.”
Clearing the Smoke
The concerns around health and safety regulations aren’t just for consumers, but extend to the general public and employees—and then to break that down further, there are also discussions for separate guidelines around smoking versus edibles. “We’re still developing regulations around the many questions that need to be addressed in terms of public policy,” Kagia says. “For example, there’s the question of combustion use in these spaces. The state has spent the last nearly 30 years stamping out cigarettes, so there’s a debate to be had about whether it’s appropriate to allow combustible consumption in an indoor space. And then if it will be permitted, what sort of air quality will need to be maintained so that other guests and staff are not subjected if they don’t want to be? Workplace safety comes into play here—if smoking is permitted indoors, how then do we regulate the way an employee works in these spaces, when staff can potentially be exposed to smoke all day?”
Kagia also brings up the question of infused foods and edibles. There’s debate on whether they need rules to ensure foods prepared on site receive an even dosing on a consistent basis. “We’ve had interest from people who own restaurants who want to offer infused smoothies, baked goods, THC pizza,” he says. “The question is: How do you ensure the THC is not all in one bite, and that the meals are consistent to what the consumer expects in terms of dosing? There are a few different models: food being prepared on site, food processed and packaged off-site with appropriate dosing, or a combination where maybe instead of preparing a cannabis-infused rice bowl, the chef creates a standard rice bowl but then the guest is given a packaged THC-infused soy sauce on the side.”
Kagia says that the best way to stay up to date on progress is by monitoring publications and board meetings from the OCM. “Board meetings are a top way to stay up to date, so we’d like to urge people to continue checking in,” Kagia says. (A full archive of OCM board meetings are kept at Cannabis.ny.gov.)
“Another thing that we want consumers to remember is that consumption in public is still being built out on the regulatory side, but don’t lose sight that it’s already baked into the law for people to be able to consume in alternative spaces. Yes, it’s critically important to consider who’s around you, such as children or the health-compromised, if you smoke, but even if we’re still working on regulation for approved consumption sites, we do want people to understand there’s already a great deal of flexibility in terms of safely consuming cannabis.”
This article appears in July 2025.
