The City of Denver has received its first application for a business license to allow marijuana use on-site.
For tourists, legal marijuana purchases are like an illegal cable box. You can buy it, but you may not be able to use it. With public consumption illegal and virtually all hotels forbidding use in their rooms, tourists are often left with no legal option for consumption.
This is why Denver voters approved a program to permit designated areas for marijuana use. Now, more than a year later, the City of Denver has received its first application for an on-site usage permit.
“The Coffee Joint” will be opening as a normal coffee shop later this month. But it could soon cater to marijuana enthusiasts if its application is approved for on-site consumption.
However, even if approved, burning marijuana flower in joints or glass will not be an option for visitors to the shop. The property has no outdoor area and the Colorado Clean Indoor Air Act forbids marijuana from being burned inside of a retail business. However, customers would be able to use vaporizers, edibles, and tinctures on-site.
The owner of the shop, Rita Tsalyuk, says she plans on making sure consumption under her roof will be done safely.
“Employees will be trained to spot over-intoxification, at which point the patron will be asked to, politely, leave, and possible given some options to get home,” Tsalyuk told NBC 9 News in Colorado.
An on-site consumption license would not permit Tsalyuk to sell marijuana on the same property. Fortunately for her, this may not provide much of a hurdle at all.
“My husband and business partner have ownership of a dispensary right next door,” Tsalyuk said.
Other cities such as Los Angeles and Las Vegas are also considering plans to offer on-site consumption options for customers.
