After years of waiting, downstate medical marijuana patients will have a nearby option to pick up their pot, but neither state nor company officials will release its location.
State health officials Friday awarded a contract to Columbia Care, a nationwide medical marijuana company with locations in five states, plus the District of Columbia.
The company will grow and sell pot in Kent County, but a company representative said no location for either business had been finalized and state officials didn’t return requests for comment.
Columbia Care says they expect to open in the second half of 2017.
Downstate medical cannabis cardholders – some with mobility issues – have long complained about having to drive to Wilmington to get the drug.
Delaware’s medical marijuana industry is still in its infancy with First State Compassion Center in Wilmington only opening in June 2015 despite lawmakers passing legislation in 2011.
Health officials are still in negotiations with a company to open a dispensary in Sussex County, but they expect to finalize an agreement in the coming weeks.
