What you should know

On the first day of legal recreational cannabis sales in New Jersey, some buyers did a happy dance as they left the store while others held their purchases high with a joyful air.

“Ladies and gentlemen,” Qwazi Robinson, 25, of Vineland, declared Thursday with a flourish as he exited The Botanist in Egg Harbor Township around 11:30 a.m., with an ounce of assorted cannabis strains that cost a total of $420.

Robinson could have bought the same amount on the street for $100, but he wanted to come on the first day of legal weed “just for the nostalgia of it,” he said.

“I want to say I bought pot the first day it was legal in New Jersey,,” Robinson said outside the store, which sold out of Sour Banana Sherbet, a cannabis strain that is popular for its high potency.

» READ MORE: Day one of NJ recreational weed sales bring joy to customers and big business for dispensaries

— Harold Brubaker, Amy S. Rosenberg and Rodrigo Torrejón

With less than an hour left for adult use marijuana sales Thursday, the line for Cannabist dispensary in Deptford only continued to grow.

Shortly before Cannabist opened it’s doors for adult use sales at 5 p.m., management decided to impose limits on what people could buy to get the line moving faster. Patrons were given the option of buying a quarter or two eighths of flower and a vape cartridge.

But despite tweaks and a fast moving line, the reality was starting to hit less than an hour before closing: some people might not be served.

Ngiste Abebe, Vice President of Public Policy at Columbia Care, which operates Cannabist, asked for patience.

”If you didn’t get in today, that’s okay,” she said. “Tomorrow will be the first Friday you can come by weed legally in New Jersey, and you’ll still be a part of history. The nice thing is it’s a new normal.”

— Ximena Conde

Recreational marijuana sales began in New Jersey today, more than a year after the state legalized and decriminalized the drug. And with good weather finally arriving, too, you may be wondering: Can I finally smoke a joint down the shore legally?

Well, not so fast. While Gov. Phil Murphy said that the state’s “broken and indefensible marijuana laws are no more” last year, there’s still some things New Jersey residents and Shore-goers alike should know before lighting up.

Here is what you need to know.

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

— Nick Vadala

Dave Adams, 65, propped a milk crate in front of Cannabist in Deptford at 11 a.m. for the chance to snag some grass -- what he likes to call marijuana-- and go “street legal.”

“With the black market, you don’t know what you’re getting,” he explained. “I mean, it’s good, but you don’t know the percentage strain or nothing like that. So I want to see what they have.”

Adams, now retired, used to smoke in the 1970s, stopped, and recently started smoking again as a way to “chill.” Cannabist is slated to be his first dispensary visit.

Similarly, Janisa Holmes, 33, is no newcomer to the world of marijuana. The novelty isn’t tied to the act of smoking or vaping, it’s with going to a store and pulling out her card to pay.

“Like, I can’t get in trouble, it’s just amazing,” said Holmes who came with her aunt to buy flower and vapes.

— Ximena Conde

Despite being open since 10 a.m., Deptford’s Cannabist, one of the 12 weed dispensaries in New Jersey able to sell adult-use marijuana Thursday, has been relatively quiet throughout the day.

Employees told Ngiste Abebe, vice president of public policy at Columbia Care, which operates Cannabist, medical patients made it a point to restock on their supply earlier in the week to avoid any possible lines.

To further put medical patients at ease, Cannabist decided to sell adult-use marijuana at the tail end of their business hours for the first week of the rollout. Medical patients can make their purchases all day, have reserved parking spots and can pay on separate lines to avoid waits.

“We wanted to make sure we maintain patient access and maintain the patient experience during the day,” said Abebe.

Medical patients will still have their expanded menu of weed products available when they enter the Starbucks-meets-hotel lobby dispensary.

Meanwhile, recreational users will be able to buy 3.5g (starting at $60) and 7g packages ($110) of flower with names like Birthday Cake #3, Hot Rod #7, and Sherb Face #8.

Half-gram Red Velvet and Apple Pie strain vape carts will also be available to recreational users.

By 4:15 p.m about 100 people were waiting in the adult use line.

— Ximena Conde

There were lines out the doors of New Jersey’s marijuana dispensaries Thursday. It was the first day recreational marijuana could be legally purchased in the state.

» READ MORE: See images from New Jersey's first day of recreational marijuana sales

— Inquirer Staff Photographers

Despite a crowded Boardwalk, there was no line at the Botanist in Atlantic City, where recreational is prohibited on the Boardwalk by City ordinance.

About 30 or so people, some from out of state, asked about recreational sales during the day and a lot of people stopped, saw the sign and moved on, according to people there. Atlantic City has said it wants to be the East Coast Capital of Cannabis, but for now, it was left out of opening day festivities.

On the flip side, some medical patients came to Atlantic City instead of Egg Harbor Township because of the crowds for recreational marijuana.

— Amy S. Rosenberg

By 2:30 p.m., the wait outside the Botanist in Egg Harbor Township had been cut to about an hour. One person in an N95 mask read a book in line, The Joy of Motherhood, while further back, someone was playing reggae music on a boom box.

Amanda Campbell, 28, of Vineland, near the front, said she wanted to be there to see “history in the making.”

“I wanted to see how many dedicated civilians were here,” she said, pointing to the line of people. “In 50, 60 years, I’ll tell my great grandchildren I was here. It’s really cool. It’s huge. And now it’s legal for cops to do. Ten years ago they were beating people down on it, arresting them for it. Now they’re in line for it.”

As if on cue, a man in an Atlantic City Police Department K-9 shirt — he said he was retired — passed by with a medical card on his way in. Another person came out with a brown paper bag and said loudly, “I can’t not smile.”

— Amy S. Rosenberg

New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy rang in the start of New Jersey’s adult-use cannabis sales at the Zen Leaf dispensary in Elizabeth on Thursday, calling the day a historic one for the Garden State.

“The first sale of legal, adult-use cannabis today marks a historic moment for New Jersey, as we leave behind indefensible practices that led to the incarceration of countless people of color and embrace the opportunities of a fair, regulated adult-use market,” Murphy said.

Murphy added that lawmakers have consistently worked to ensure that the state’s nascent recreational cannabis industry equitably reflects New Jersey’s diverse population, protects access for medical marijuana patients, and prioritizes justice.

“From day one, my administration has worked with our partners in the Legislature to advance social justice on behalf of communities disproportionately impacted by marijuana prohibition by working to expunge cannabis-related convictions, decriminalize possession, and establish an equitable cannabis industry,” he said. “It is a moment that required long hours of work to make sure we got it right the first time, and I am proud of our efforts to get to this point.”

Cannabis Regulatory Commission Chair Dianna Houenou was similarly proud of New Jersey’s start in recreational marijuana sales, saying in a statement that it is “an exciting time for New Jersey cannabis enthusiasts.”

“I am proud of the work the New Jersey Cannabis Regulatory Commission has done to lead us to market opening,” Houenou said. “While today is an important moment for New Jersey, it marks only the beginning of the better and more robust industry that is to come.”

— Nick Vadala

Sharon Ali, The Botanist’s regional general manager for New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania, stood and watched as the long line of customers filtered into the company’s Williamstown store. Thursday was a historic day for The Botanist, she said, which had been selling to medical patients for almost five years.

It’s a “huge day for the state. For the industry. and for the Botanist team,” she said. “We’ve been preparing, gearing up for adult use. Hoping obviously that they turn out and that the excitement is as much as we anticipated.”

The Williamstown location was only selling whole flower, vape cartridges and pre-rolled joints, said Ali, though marijuana edibles were likely coming soon. As of early Thursday afternoon, the dispensary still had plenty of inventory and was not in danger of selling out, a spokesperson said.

“It opens up access significantly across the entire state,” said Ali. “We are thrilled that we are one of the first among a few who have been given the opportunity to start adult use sales.”

— Rodrigo Torrejón

Dionne Finley and Joseph Gaeta were also eager to try out Bonkers and Sophora marijuana flower they had purchased from The Botanist, packing a bowl and rolling a joint nearby. For the couple, Thursday’s expansion to recreational use for marijuana brought with it mixed emotions.

“There are more restrictions,” said Finley. “And there are new levels of it being illegal.”

Finley and Gaeta are avid smokers and also thought the prices at The Botanist were “outrageous,” saying they have been able to acquire the same amount of marijuana flower for less than half the nearly $60 price tag.

— Rodrigo Torrejón

— John Duchneskie

Inside The Botanist in Williamstown, media gathered to witness the first purchase of recreational marijuana at the store. Marvin Washington, a former NFL player turned cannabis advocate, bought some flower for his friends and was met with raucous applause.

For Washington, expanding recreational marijuana to the East Coast was a huge next step in cannabis accessibility and planted the seeds for a future industry hub.

“We’ve been waiting for this day for it to come to the population centers in the Atlantic states. When I first got into this industry, most of the action was happening out west. Now it’s happening here. I think this can be the cannabis capital of the world.”

Washington, who was a defensive end in the NFL and is a Super Bowl champion, was first drawn to marijuana as a safer alternative to many of the drugs prescribed for pain management in the NFL. Aghast at the ravages of opioid addiction, Washington turned to marijuana for help and has been a vocal advocate for its use ever since.

“I got into it because I wanted it to be an alternative to the opiates and benzodiazepines that so many athletes and so many members of society are being poisoned with,” he said. “This is ancient medicine. This is the way we’ve taken care of ourselves for thousands of years.”

— Rodrigo Torrejón

As Andrew Sanford walked out of The Botanist, he raised a canister of his newly purchased marijuana and shouted out to the still-growing line of customers.

“God’s green herb!”

Sanford purchased 3.5 grams each of Peanut Butter Candy Cake and Sophora, both marijuana flowers. With his brown bag in hand, Sanford was immediately going to smoke his purchase.

“The law says I can roll up. I’m just following the law,” Sanford joked.

— Rodrigo Torrejón

People walked out with their paper bags with a joyful air.

“Ladies and gentlemen,” Qwazi Robinson, 25, of Vineland, declared as he exited the Botanist in Egg Harbor Township around 11:30 a.m. Robinson said he’d checked the website for the Vineland location, and found supply lacking.

“They had very little flower for us to purchase,” he said. So he and a friend drove to Egg Harbor Township, where supply was more robust. He said he bought an ounce for $420, consisting of multiple strains that he let the Botanist people select.

He noted that he could have bought the same amount on the street for $100, but wanted to come on the first day of legal weed “just for the nostalgia of it.”

“I want to say I bought pot the fist day it was legal in new Jersey, and I bought a whole ounce.”

He said he’d probably go back to getting weed from his other sources, but might come back to The Botanist for a splurge.

“This will be like instead of going to Applebee’s, I’ll go to Ruth’s Chris,” he said.

He noted the diversity of people waiting in line — Black, white, Asian — and said, “I saw people. I saw beating hearts that want to get high. We all came together. We’re not arguing. We’re all standing in line for some pot.”

— Amy S. Rosenberg

New Jersey cannabis regulators included Curaleaf’s Edgewater Park location on its list of dispensaries that were expected to open for recreational sales Thursday.

But it was delayed by what Curaleaf’s CEO Joe Bayern called “a small zoning technicality.”

He’s hoping the problem will be ironed out at a zoning meeting tonight and that the store will open Friday.

Curaleaf’s Bordentown store has a longer road to zoning approval, but could be open for recreational sales in a couple weeks, said Bayern.

Bayern liked the lines he saw at Curaleaf in Bellmawr, which started recreational sales at 8 a.m., 90 minutes earlier than planned because company officials wanted to be sure to have enough time to get everyone through before closing at 8 p.m.

Curaleaf expects to have 2,500 customers on opening day, with an average purchase of about $100, Bayern said.

— Harold Brubaker

Richard Jester was so excited he lined up at 5:30 a.m. to be the first in line at The Botanist in Williamstown. Jester, who has spinal stenosis and uses a wheelchair, deals with chronic pain but was unable to obtain a medical marijuana card because it was prohibitively expensive.

“It’s $300 just to even try. To even see a doctor about a medicinal card. I’m disabled and I’m on a fixed income and 300 is 85 percent of my check. I can’t live on that.”

Jester, who is from Williamstown, said marijuana helped ease much of his pain but also helped relax him.

“If I get to stand for 10 minutes, that’s a blessing. I’ve done an Olympic run,” said Jester. “Weed helps. You want to feel calm. Not a bundle of nerves.”

Jester planned to buy a pack of pre rolled marijuana joints dubbed Mob Boss.

— Rodrigo Torrejón

Diana Kline, 58, a waitress in Wildwood, was one of the minority of women buyers in Egg Harbor Township. Overall, the lines were somewhat racially diverse, and ranged widely in age.

Kline said she has used cannabis bought in Seattle and Oregon to treat her PTSD and manic depression, but never was able to get a medical card.

“Before I was treating with marijuana, I couldn’t maintain a job,” she said. She was looking for pre-rolls and cartridges and said she’d be spending a couple hundred dollars.

Kline said she preferred the sativa strain to help her function productively. Others in line were going for the indica, which they joked would put them “indacouch.”

— Amy S. Rosenberg

Natalia John, 43, was practically dancing as she left the Curaleaf store in Bellmawr with her purchases, including an eighth of Cakepop flower for $50.

Asked when she would smoke it, the resident of Beachwood, Ocean County, said: “As soon as I get in the house.”

She drove more than an hour across the state for her first legal purchase.

“They absolutely refuse to allow sales up there,” she said with a combination of disgust and frustration in her voice.

— Harold Brubaker

Three Egg Harbor township police officers stood by on Century Avenue near the Botanist.

“We’re just here for traffic control,” said Sgt. Larry Graham. “That’s all.”

Several medical patients were directed to a reserved parking area. The medical patients were able to go in without waiting in line. Some customers in line reminisced about being teenagers buying weed and seeing police.

“If you walked into a known drug dealers house and walk out and there’s a cop car there, it’s scary,” said Vince, 45, who didn’t want to use his last name. “This is cool. This is great.”

— Amy S. Rosenberg

John Petrucelli, 67, wasn’t at Curaleaf in Bellmawr to buy, but rather to show off his cannabis suit and tie and — invited by Curaleaf — to get his picture taken with happy buyers.

“I just had my picture taken with 100 people I don’t know,” said Petrucelli, otherwise known as Mayor McWeed.

Petrucelli said that after decades of laying floors for a living, his joints hurt. After a couple tokes in the morning, he’s ready to go.

Petrucelli helped promote opening day in Bellmawr, but he also represents a challenge for the nascent industry. He has no plans to shift his purchases from the street to a legal store.

Even some Curaleaf customers standing in line said they weren’t sure they’d be regulars in New Jersey’s weed stores.

“I think they might supplement my purchases,” said Felix, a 40-year-old Collingwood resident who would only give his last name as O.

Felix ordered online at 7 a.m. and was in line to pick up his purchase of a quarter ounce of Puddintain flower for $120 and and eighth of School Lunch flower for $50. The prices are higher than he usually pays, but he didn’t mind for the day.

— Harold Brubaker

Marc LaRocca, 33, of Egg Harbor Township, said he was excited to buy adult use cannabis and would be buying “whatever is high in THC.”

“I heard Sour Banana Sherbet might be available,” he said.

Sour Banana Sherbet, a hybrid strain high in THC, has been a popular selection in Egg Harbor Township.

— Amy S. Rosenberg

Speaking from the company’s Bellmawr location on Thursday, Curaleaf CEO Joe Bayern assuaged concerns about running out of recreational marijuana stock on opening day for the nascent adult-use market in New Jersey.

“We’ve been getting ready for this for quite a while,” Bayern said. “We have plenty of product. We more than tripled our capacity in the state since the referendum was passed.”

As a result, he said, Curaleaf is prepared to not only supply their stores with sellable adult-use marijuana, but “supply on a wholesale basis” to other businesses going online for recreational sales. The company, he added, wants to work with state regulators to adapt to market needs through cultivation caps and the number of the dispensaries in the state, among other factors.

“It takes time to build up that capacity,” Bayern said. “We’ve got a lot of experience doing that in 22 other states, we want to share that experience, and we want to make sure that we’re providing for a stable and equitable industry to develop in New Jersey.”

A successful recreational cannabis market there, he said, is important because New Jersey is a populous, influential state that could be an inflection point in the Northeast corridor when it comes to changing perceptions about cannabis in the country. The company expects the state to grow into a $2 billion market.

“As we get more and more support behind legalization of cannabis, I think it’s going to change perceptions across the entire U.S.,” he said.

— Nick Vadala and Alejandro Alvarez

Sean Smith, 33, in line at the Botanist in Egg Harbor Township said he was from Pennsylvania, but was staying in Stone Harbor. He said he had been “busted in PA when he was 19 and put on probation for two years.”

“That was a pain in my ass,” Smith said. “I’ve been waiting for this day.”

He brought $80 in cash and was going to buy “something about banana.”

— Amy S. Rosenberg

At The Botanist in Williamstown, a line of about 100 people wound its way around the parking lot Thursday morning, everyone eagerly awaiting the doors to open to purchase recreational marijuana.

For Andrew Sanford, of Williamstown, it was about time. Marijuana was a near-holy plant, grown on earth to help people, he said.

“If you don’t like weed, you don’t like God,” said Sanford.

The atmosphere among customers like Sanford was of excitement and relief that they’d finally be able to buy weed without a medical marijuana card.

AnnMarie Dye, also of Williamstown, had lost a few friends to cancer and only wished they’d been able to see the expanded accessibility.

Dye has back pain and was unable to stomach pain pills. Marijuana was a better alternative for her.

“I consider it medicine,” she said.

— Rodrigo Torrejón

Across Coolidge Avenue from the Curaleaf location that was doing a brisk business on the first morning of legal recreational cannabis sales in New Jersey, the Massachusetts company has a cannabis cultivation facility.

While taking a break outside, several cultivation workers were thrilled to see a long line outside the store.

“It’s a beautiful sight to see in New Jersey. It almost brings a tear to your eye,” said Sean, who declined to give his last name because he didn’t want his personal information to be public. “I’m hoping it’s going to be the California of the East Coast,” he said before heading back to work.

— Harold Brubaker

About 100 people lined up in Egg Harbor Township at the Botanist, where one person said it reminded him of the opening of Resorts Casino in Atlantic City when gambling was legalized in 1978. “It’s like a carnival atmosphere,” he said. “Black Friday.”

“Unbelievable,” one person said as they began letting people in.

“You can say frisbee was played,” said another, carrying a yellow disc.

Workers were urging people to make selections online prior to entering. One man said he had chosen $53.80 of pre-rolled “Sour Banana Sherbet.” He said he hadn’t smoked weed in decades. Others showed up with their own vapes.

One of the first people to emerge with legal weed was a 34-year-old man who did not want to give his name because “I’m a teacher,” and didn’t want high school students to make a big deal over it. He bought a half ounce of indica flower for about $250 using a debit card, and emerged with a brown paper bag. He said he was a recent user of weed and appreciated being able to purchase legally.

— Amy S. Rosenberg

Opening day for recreational marijuana sales in New Jersey began promptly at 12:01 a.m. for Justin Dugary. That’s when he lined up at Curaleaf’s Bellmawr location — making him the first person in line at that location, and likely the first person to purchase legal recreational cannabis in the state.

“My friends here got here at about 4:30 a.m., so it was quiet, cold and lonely,” Dugary told The Inquirer. “But I wanted to be the first person in New Jersey to purchase legal recreational cannabis.”

Dugary said he has been using cannabis for 20 years due to a “severe case of Crohn’s disease” that has seriously impacted his life over the last two decades.

Legal marijuana, he said, will provide a vital stream of tax revenue for the state, and that that tax revenue should go toward benefiting schools and teachers in New Jersey.

“I really think these taxes are important to New Jersey,” Dugary said. “It’s going to be great.”

— Nick Vadala and Alejandro Alvarez

At Curaleaf in Bellmawr, more than 150 people were standing in line at 9:15 a.m., some of them munching on Krispy Kreme doughnuts that Curaleaf employees were handing out.

Donna Baker, of Monroeville, who described herself as a longtime cannabis smoker, had made it through the line and was minutes away from making her purchase.

”This is just unbelievable. I didn’t expect this in my lifetime,” the 56-year-old said. “I’m not sure it’s a good idea. Do we really want all these people walking around stoned?”

— Harold Brubaker

When the New Jersey Cannabis Regulatory Commission announced the start date for recreational marijuana sales in the Garden State last week, you could almost hear the collective frustrated sigh of thousands of cannabis consumers:

Why not 4/20?

So close, yet so far. New Jersey will start adult-use cannabis sales Thursday — just one day after the unofficial marijuana holiday of 4/20. Adult marijuana users will be able to purchase up to an ounce of cannabis at dispensaries, without a medical marijuana card.

With that, any hopes of lighting up in celebration on 4/20 with legal weed were stubbed out like a spent joint on the pavement on lot at a Camden Phish show. And all because of logistical concerns, a CRC spokesperson told The Inquirer.

“Selecting 4/20 for opening day would have presented unmanageable logistical challenges for patients and other buyers, surrounding communities, and for municipalities,” said Toni-Anne Blake, communications director for the CRC. “Regulators and industry representatives agreed it was not feasible.”

The CRC did not respond to requests to elaborate on the logistical challenges that prevented recreational sales from starting on 4/20, or for estimates on potential tax revenue the state may be forgoing by starting sales the following day. But part of the reasoning may have to do with concerns about supply shortages, said DeVaughn Ward, senior legislative council for the Marijuana Policy Project.

» READ MORE: Why New Jersey isn’t starting legal marijuana sales on 4/20

— Nick Vadala

New Jersey has some of the highest cannabis prices in the country, according to the state’s CRC. In 2021, the price of 1 ounce of weed in New Jersey ranged from $320 to $480. By contrast, in California, it ranges from $99 for “bottom shelf” (lowest-quality weed) to $320 for “top shelf” (highest-quality weed).

According to the CRC, the supply of cannabis products is increasing every month, and prices are decreasing.

Here’s what prices you can expect by weight:

» READ MORE: Where and when you’ll be able to buy recreational marijuana in New Jersey

— Henry Savage

An old pawnshop on Pacific Avenue is on track to become Atlantic City’s first legal retail cannabis shop after getting zoning approval Tuesday from the state’s Casino Reinvestment Development Authority.

The CRDA, which regulates zoning in the city’s Tourism District, unanimously approved an application from Sonraj LLC, to open a class 5 micro dispensary at 2415 Pacific Ave., directly behind Boardwalk Hall, a long-vacant property. The company will call the shop “The Healing Side,” according to its application.

There was no comment from the public. The meeting was held remotely.

Last week, the state gave approval to seven companies currently operating as medical dispensaries to open recreational sales, including the Botanist at 100 Century Dr. in Egg Harbor Township, beginning on Thursday.

The Botanist has another location on the Boardwalk near South Carolina in Atlantic City, but that will continue to be medical only as Atlantic City’s City Council has prohibited retail sales on the Boardwalk. Atlantic City officials have nonetheless said they want the resort to be the East Coast’s top cannabis destination.

» READ MORE: Atlantic City approves its first retail cannabis shop in old pawnshop

— Amy S. Rosenberg

Recreational weed sales for adults will start Thursday at 13 locations, including six in South Jersey, the New Jersey Cannabis Regulatory Commission said Tuesday.

The closest to Philadelphia are Curaleaf in Bellmawr and Edgewater Park, The Cannabist in Deptford, and The Botanist in Williamstown. Curaleaf is opening at 9:30 a.m., The Botanist at 10 a.m., but The Cannabist won’t sell its first recreational cannabis until 5 p.m.

“We expect 13 locations for the entire state will make for extremely busy stores,” Jeff Brown, executive director of the cannabis commission, said in a news release. “The dispensaries have assured us that they are ready to meet the demand without disrupting patient access, and with minimal impact on the surrounding communities, but patience will be key to a good opening day.”

Some observers doubted that all 13 of the medical dispensaries that received approval on April 11 to expand into recreational sales would be ready to go at the outset, but that turned out not to be the case.

Shoppers will be able to buy up to 1 ounce of dried flower or up to 5 grams of concentrates, resins, or oils, or 10 100mg packages of edibles at a time.

» READ MORE: Thirteen cannabis dispensaries in NJ will be open for recreational sales Thursday. Here’s where to find them.

— Harold Brubaker