Colorado cannabis stores are required to follow a number of compliance safety measures put in place since the state first legalized recreational cannabis, including requirements to have cameras recording video footage, limited areas with customer access to cannabis and commercial-grade locks. But now, the city of Denver is looking to add even more security measures to cannabis businesses, drawing polarized responses from industry professionals, according to a Colorado Sun report.
Denver medical and recreational dispensaries have been required to have at least one safe for cannabis products and cash, secured in the building in an area with limited access, since January 1.
Shops without sufficient room for a safe are required to install alternative security measures, like guar posts or other physical barriers to keep cars from smashing into the building, live remote monitoring of facility video surveillance with loudspeakers and alarm systems featuring sirens or strobe lights or an onsite security guard patrolling the premises during non-business hours, the new rules state.
These rules apply to all Denver retail and medical cannabis dispensaries, along with hospitality and sales businesses, where people can purchase and consume cannabis onsite. Delivery vehicles carrying weed products must also be unmarked and equipped with video surveillance and a secure storage compartment. Officials have also compiled an online checklist for businesses navigating the new compliance regulations.
Some local business owners expressed their concerns implementing the new rules, including Wanda James, co-owner of Simply Pure. The dispensary experienced an attempted robbery last June, prompting an alarm as the thieves attempted to get into the store’s offices. Once police arrived, the intruders jumped out of the window and drove away before they were able to steal any products.
James says that no money or cannabis products were stolen, that all of the products are in a vault and all of the cash in the store is picked up daily.
In regard to the new rules, James said, “All this does is put small businesses out of business so that the large businesses can take over and that’s what Denver has been about now for years. We’re literally going to reduce the size of our dispensary by about a half because we have to literally build a safe. It’s beyond me.”
Others opposed say the policy is unreasonable, given that there or other businesses, like jewelry stores, pawn shops and gun shops, that sell high-value merchandise without the same stringent procedures in place.
Though some cannabis industry leaders say the rules will increase public safety and protect cannabis stores from repeated burglaries. Kristi Meye, general manager of the Golden Meds dispensary on South Broadway, said her store is in compliance with the new rules, adding a steel door and locking system to the store’s safe and a plywood wall on the inside of the vault.
“Honestly, I have mixed feelings on it,” she said of the new rules. “This rule change this year was the biggest I’ve seen in years for the industry and I immediately thought about a lot of small mom-and-pop places, if they are still around, even. A lot of the rules that they’ve added on, over the years, have made it harder for small businesses, from what I’ve seen, and I’m not a business owner. It’s a lot to keep up with.”
The state’s increase in burglaries were a crucial reason for the new safety and storage rules. According to Denver Police Department data, there were 188 reports of burglaries at cannabis businesses in 2020, an increase from 144 in 2019. Data from 2021 is expected to be released in the coming weeks.
Eric Escudero, director of communications for the Denver Department of Excise and Licenses, told Colorado Sun that there is no licensing mechanism to require jewelry or gun stores to take additional security steps. Though, Escudero also noted he’s not aware of any comparable increase in gun shop, pan shop and jewelry store burglaries, which might prompt additional safety precautions if the same trends were observed.
“One of the reasons we think we have one of the most successfully-regulated cannabis markets in the world is that we have focused on safety,” Escudero said. “But unfortunately, in recent years, we have seen an increase in burglaries at dispensaries, and obviously, any time we see an increase in crime, that is really concerning to us.”
Denver isn’t the only Colorado city to implement these rules, either. Boulder also has safe storage rules for medical and recreational cannabis; Aurora does as well, and that city is currently in the process of revisiting rules requiring all applicants seeking a license to operate a retail cannabis business to submit a plan specifying how they’ll prevent the theft of cannabis products. Aurora applicants must also demonstrate that they will install a safe or vault for storage of cannabis products and cash while the business is closed before they are allowed to open.
