Alaska – The Higher Calling cannabis club enters their Purple Widow strain to the North Star Cannabis Classic. Photo: THC FB
As cannabis clubs present issues to local governments across the country, Alaska is on track to become the first state with legal clubs.
What is a cannabis club? Think Amsterdam — cafes where you can hang out and use cannabis.
Back in 2014, Alaska voters passed recreational consumption of cannabis for adults over the age of 21 and agreed to the creation of regulations for legally growing, cultivating, and the retail sales. Now, two years later, officials of the Alaska State Marijuana Control Board have finalized regulations for the consumption of cannabis at stores open to the public.
Alaska’s marijuana clubs like The Higher Calling, also known as THC, are currently operating within a gray area of Alaska state law. In an interview with Alaska Public Media, the co-owner describes her business as “a private club for cannabis enthusiasts.” She doesn’t sell cannabis in her business but instead offers games, coffee, and a canna-friendly environment to bring and smoke your own.
Problem is, according to state regulators, that is considered public consumption – which is illegal in Alaska.
The business has been operating for a little over a month and reports that they have 130 paying members and as of this writing, THC has not been shut down by state officials.
RELATED: D.C. Lifts Cannabis Smoking Ban, Then Takes it Back
Don’t expect to see cannabis sales until the summer of 2016
According to the Alaska Journal, licensing applications begin February 24, 2016, meaning Alaskan entrepreneurs looking to open their retail doors for legal consumption will have to wait at least three months (the typical life cycle of the plant) to grow, track, and test the legal cannabis before it hits retail shelves.
Interested in investing? Alaska state law says you must be an Alaskan resident for at least one year.
If you want to do the cannatourist thing while visiting the Frontier State, do your research first. Close to one million cruise ship passengers visit the state capital each year, and according to Juneau.org it’s one of the municipalities that have very strict prohibitions on smoking of any kind.
Chloe Sommers is the Executive Editor of the Never Daunted Radio Network. You can reach her on Twitter @ChloePalma