Jersey Shore ‘weedtrepreneurs’ are cultivating a beachfront cannabis culture

The Jersey Shore, famed for its premier family beach vacations, pioneering casinos, and globally renowned boardwalks, is facing a new question: Is it prepared for marijuana?

Locals will say cannabis has long been part of the Shore’s fabric, predating legalization. Chet Kennedy, 32, remembers growing up in Cape May, where young people found ways to smoke marijuana under boardwalks and behind closed doors, hidden from vacationers and police.

“Cannabis culture before legalization brought people together, it didn’t matter what walk of life you were from,” said Kennedy, who manages the Boarding House boutique hotel in Cape May. “It was a way to relax and get away from the stressors of life.”

Despite New Jersey nearing the billion-dollar mark in annual legal weed sales, with rapid growth surpassing neighboring states, much of the Jersey Shore remains hesitant. Despite the majority of Shore residents voting to legalize cannabis in 2020, local elected officials in southern New Jersey Shore towns fear the clash between marijuana’s stigma and the family-friendly image cultivated over decades.

Ocean City spokesperson Doug Bergen explained the city’s stance, citing its branding as “America’s Greatest Family Resort” and its unanimous city council decision to prohibit dispensaries. (Statewide legislation allowed municipalities to govern whether to allow dispensaries in their jurisdictions.) Several Shore towns, including Avalon, Cape May, Ocean City, Wildwood, Sea Isle City, and Stone Harbor, have outright banned cannabis businesses and reaffirmed bans on public smoking of marijuana and tobacco.

But some residents and vacationers still buy weed from dispensaries and consume it in these Jersey Shore towns — provided they have a private property with permission.

Just ask Jeff Hodgson of North Cape May. The 64-year-old Philly-area native has been consuming cannabis medicinally and recreationally among friends for years down the Shore. When Hodgson first bought his summer home 20 years ago, he and his friends would make a day out of kayaking in the ocean, lounging on the beach, and passing a joint or vape. But at first, “I didn’t really know if anyone smoked, it wasn’t something that people talked about,” he said. “It turned out a heck of a lot of ‘em smoked, too.”

For consumers like Hodgson, legalization has opened the doors to dispensaries near their favorite vacation spots and provided a sigh of relief when smoking on their porches. But for the most part, those looking to grow the cannabis scene at the Jersey Shore have an uphill battle.

Except one city in particular.

At the northern edge of what Philadelphians refer to as “down the Shore” lies Atlantic City, renowned for its casinos and nightlife, which wholeheartedly embraced marijuana legalization.

Since then, Atlantic City has seen the establishment of seven marijuana dispensaries, including one situated directly on the Boardwalk. By year’s end, pending approvals from the New Jersey Cannabis Regulatory Commission, the state’s first legal weed consumption lounges may open.

Already, thousands of consumers and businesses from across the country flocked to Atlantic City during its MJ Unpacked cannabis business convention last month. For marijuana’s biggest holiday, April 20 (known colloquially as “4/20″), iconic hip-hop acts that are synonymous with marijuana use, like Cypress Hill of “Hits from the Bong” fame, came to town for a “Bongwalk Empire” celebration.

» READ MORE: Where to buy marijuana on your way to the Jersey Shore

This is all going according to plan, said Atlantic City’s “weed czar” Kashawn “Kash” McKinley and his fellow Atlantic City Cannabis Commission cochair Zach Katzen, of ushering A.C. into becoming the East Coast’s premier cannabis destination.

“Atlantic City is at the forefront on the East Coast when it comes to cannabis enterprise and culture,” Katzen said. “As long as we can continue to maintain what we’re doing and see this market evolve, we’re primed to be that No. 1 spot.”

In A.C. dispensaries and consumption lounges, consumers will be treated to the equivalent of a fine dining experience for weed, McKinley said. Some may even have staff on hand to roll a joint for you.

These establishments will be connected to dispensaries and allow customers to buy products and smoke (or eat) them right next door. Lounges will provide pipes, rolling papers, and other paraphernalia, said Spencer Belz, operations manager for SunnyTien dispensary and lounge.

“We’ve got two 80 inch TVs to show sports games, horse races, and boxing matches, plus live entertainment like music, paint-and-puffs, and comedy shows,” Belz said. “We want to give people the opportunity to have experiences. You can sit on your porch or in your bedroom and smoke a joint, but there’s not a lot of places in New Jersey that you can go and experience entertainment while consuming cannabis.”

Lounges won’t be able to serve food or drinks, similar to Jersey breweries, so they partner with local restaurants and food trucks to create a worthwhile experience.

As the “Las Vegas of the East Coast” strives to become a prime cannabis destination, other Shore towns are navigating the cannabis landscape more cautiously.

In West Cape May, Nicole Melchiorre and Tom Nuscis co-own Shore House Canna, a veteran and woman-owned recreational cannabis dispensary that debuted last September. Being the first and only dispensary in a South Jersey beach town outside Atlantic City, they are pioneering how cannabis integrates into quieter local beach communities.

“We do a great deal of education for those that are ‘canna-curious,’” Melchiorre said.

During this year’s 4/20 festivities, Shore House Canna hosted an event unveiling New Jersey’s inaugural legal weed brownie, created by pastry chef Matha Figaro.

The event drew appearances from former NFL running back and cannabis entrepreneur Ricky Williams. Nearby, Kennedy’s Boarding House organized a “Best Buds Weekend,” featuring discounted rooms, a cannabis-themed marketplace, and rooftop yoga at 4:20 p.m.

However, due to regulatory uncertainty, public cannabis consumption at these events remains unadvertised and prohibited.

“We’re approaching this in a way where it’s not in your face — we’re not the ‘pot hotel’ — our focus is more the camaraderie and bonding that goes along with cannabis,” said Kennedy.

Dave Christian, Shore House Canna’s operations manager, recognized the need for cohesion in a cannabis business within a vacation town. The dispensary’s surf shop facade, adorned with vibrant floral murals, aims to be inviting, especially to an elderly population seeking natural alternatives to pharmaceuticals.

Most of Shore House Canna’s clientele are 65 and above, seeking pain relief or sleep aids, with edibles being the top-selling products over smokable flower.

One such customer, Hodgson, relocated from Pennsylvania to his North Cape May Shore house last year. Managing bone-on-bone arthritis and sleep apnea, he relies on high-CBD and indica cannabis products in various forms, including smokable flower, vaporizers, chocolates, caramels, gummies, and brownies.

Two years out from legal weed sales, cannabis culture at the Jersey Shore is still in its infancy. Does that mean that Shore towns that opted out of the weed industry will change course? Not likely in the near future, said Cape May’s city manager Paul Dietrich.

“I don’t think the city of Cape May will ever reach that point,” Dietrich said. “We’re still old-school and historic in nature here, and I don’t see that changing in the short term.”

But in towns that have allowed cannabis, like West Cape May, dispensaries are diversifying the business landscape and bringing tax money directly to municipalities, said West Cape May Mayor Carol Sabo. “When you have more tax revenue, you’re able to keep taxes down. Our taxes are stable and increased by half a penny this year, so that really helped a lot having the breathing room.”

“Looking back, I wouldn’t have done anything differently. I think it’s better to be on the right side of history and sometimes you have to be the first one,” Sabo said about taking pride in her borough introducing the first dispensary in Cape May County.

While the Jersey Shore may not transform into a cannabis destination overnight, vacationers should anticipate a gradual shift toward greater acceptance of cannabis over time, Hodgson suggests.

“I believe it’s going to become more and more a daily part of life at the Shore. In another 15 years, it’ll be as if cannabis has always been here,” Hodgson said. “As of now, I don’t see people really smoking in public except for when people occasionally sneak in their vape hit.”

In the meantime, marijuana will mostly stay behind closed doors as it’s illegal to consume weed in public and vacationers can’t smoke in rental homes. Those that do partake will need to buy their cannabis outside of the famous Jersey Shore coastal beach towns and try to hide their consumption or risk fines of up to $1,000.

» READ MORE: Can I smoke weed legally at the Shore?

Unless that vacation happens to be in Atlantic City after consumption lounges open. As lounges wait for approval, local stakeholders have definitive goals of what’s possible in “America’s playground.”

“Ultimately the goal is in five years to have integration to the level where you can go to Boardwalk Hall, get a beer, buy an infused brownie, go watch your comedy show or concert, and have your fun,” Katzen said.