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North Carolina City Prepping for Possible Cannabis Legalization

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[dropcap class=”kp-dropcap”]I[/dropcap]n North Carolina, the Asheville Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) officials at a Dec. 11 city council meeting stated that they are getting ready to sell cannabis if it becomes legal in the state.  

ABC Board Chairman Lewis Isaac told the council it is the board’s job to take a “30,000-foot view” and prepare for changes. “There is a national trend to legalize cannabis. And we will probably oversee the sales and distribution because we are already a part of that control structure,” Isaac told the Asheville Citizen-Times.

Council members did not mention anything about the likelihood for cannabis legalization yet. Last year, the council  unanimously approved a state medical cannabis bill. Though only ten states including Washington, D.C. have legalized recreational cannabis, North Carolina might as well be the eleventh. North Carolina is currently only allowing cannabidiol (CBD) products that contain no more than 0.9 percent tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and five percent CBD.

The city’s ABC system built a 40,000-square-foot warehouse recently to deal with rising liquor sales. The warehouse was built with the capacity to accommodate cannabis products, should cannabis become legal anytime soon.

“One of the good things about our new warehouse is that we will have space in case that indeed does occur,” the chairman said. “I’m 62 years old. I’m not going to be there forever but I sure don’t want my successor to curse my name.” He indicated that Asheville ABC officials have talked to liquor regulators in legal states at national conventions, but they were told that cannabis and alcohol shouldn’t be sold at the same locations.  “Every one of them said, whatever you do, separate the two of them from a retail standpoint. It’s a different product, it’s like selling tires and clothes,” he said.

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