MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The Mon County Board of Health unanimously approved 20 permits for medical cannabis dispensaries in the county during a special meeting Thursday.
Board members began reviewing medical cannabis dispensary applications in December of 2019, according to executive director of the Mon County Health Department Dr. Lee Smith. Meetings with medical marijuana representatives, state health officials and the Office of Medical Cannabis continues until March of 2020 when the pandemic hit.
Also in March, the city of Morgantown and county commission declared a state of emergency due to the coronavirus. On March 19, the governor issued Executive Order 7-20 that suspended state business consistent with West Virginia State Code 15-5-6.
“Suspend provisions of any regulatory statute prescribing procedures for conduct of state business,” Dr. Smith said,” Or orders/rules of any state agency if strict compliance there with would in anyway prevent, hinder or delay necessary action in coping with the COVID emergency.”
Due to the timing of the pandemic and a 2016 state budget that cut health department budgets by 25 percent, health department workers did not have the resources to manage the pandemic while continuing normal business.
According to Dr. Smith, in 2010 800 people worked in public health across the state and by 2020 that number was down to about 340 workers statewide.
“It’s been stated the Monongalia County Board of Health has been a hold out and this was a deliberate attempt to derail the process,” Dr. Smith said,” But, nothing could be further from the truth.”
In fact, the health department began working seven days a week to manage the COVID response, then March 22 the case was identified in Mon County.
“Here we are on October 22, 227 days later with no end in sight,” Dr. Smith said,” We’ve been working continuously for over two-thirds of this year with a vulnerable staff that has been particularly challenged.”
On June 22, the Office of Medical Cannabis sent 21 dispensary applications to county officials that they said were vetted. Dr. Smith said as the applications were checked they discovered some of the locations were too close to schools or daycare centers.
Health department workers were then required to use the county GIS system and conduct manual measurements to verify each location was in fact at least 1,000 feet from a school or daycare center.
The verification process continued through the month of August when the Office of Medical Cannabis told Dr. Smith they had two more months to score the applications, via email.
“My interpretation is that two months from September 10 would be November 10 at which time the scoring process was to occur,” Dr. Smith said,” So, we are well within the timeline of that.”
The application for a dispensary at 274 Old Cheat Road was not approved because the location is within 1,000 feet of a daycare center.
“The state thought they were 870 feet from it by looking at their map, actually walking it with a wheel from the doorway to the daycare center was 921 feet,” Dr. Smith said,” So, they are outside the limitations.”
The county approved applicants will now be eligible for a permit pending further evaluation and scoring at a state level.
The following locations have been approved:
- Columbia Care West Virginia L.L.C. 225 Don Knotts Blvd
- Holistic West Virignia Farms 1 L.L.C. 360 Industrial Dr Star City
- Kindred Empowerment 11 L.L.C. 376 Patteson Drive
- New Leaf West Virginia L.L.C. 8 Eastgate Plaza Morgantown
- Wild & Wonderful Cannabis L.L.C. 629 Cheat Road
- The Healing Center 370 Chaplain Hill Road Westover
- Organic Remedies West Virginia Inc. 246 Cheat Road
- Kindred Empowerment 6 L.L.C. 7,8 Suburban Court Morgantown
- Mountaineer Releaf L.L.C 63 Don Knotts Blvd
- Cure to Growth Inc. 306 Bull Run Road
- Morgantown WV Retail L.L.C. 400 Beechurst Ave
- Kindred Medical Cannabis L.L.C. 718 Ventura Drive
- Almost Heaven Cannabis Company L.L.C. 709 Beechurst Ave
- Solevo Wellness West Virginia L.L.C. 10548 A Maple Dr
- Solevo Wellness West Virginia L.L.C. 525 Granville Square Suite 115
- True Leaf West Virginia Inc. 1397 Earl Core Road
- Appalachian Pharmaceuticals L.L.C. 2045 University Avenue
- New Leaf West Virginia L.L.C. 1016 Maple Drive Morgantown
- Verano West Virginia L.L.C. 871 Fairmont Road Westover
- Verano West Virginia L.L.C. 205 Ventura Drive