A long-time registered nurse and entrepreneur secured a special permit this week to open a new cannabis retailer in New Haven.
The City Plan Commission granted the permit to Acreage Connecticut Retail JV LLC for an adult-use cannabis retailer at 169 East St. at its meeting Wednesday, according to Planner Esther Rose-Wilen.
Kebra Smith-Bolden, a nurse who launched her business CannaHealth LLC in 2017, is a principal with Acreage.
“I am very excited about the impact I will have in New Haven,” Smith-Bolden said, on Friday.
Plans are to open the new business at the East Street facility in the first quarter of 2024, she said.
Foundry Square LLC owns the property, which is in a light industrial zone, where cannabis retail facilities are allowed by special permit.
Acreage plans to rent the 3,000-square-foot first floor of the commercial building, which will be renovated for the new use.
The business anticipates its hours of operation will be Mondays through Thursdays from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., and Fridays through Sundays from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m., according to documents on file with the city.
Through CannaHealth LLC, Smith-Bolden helps people secure medical cannabis certification. CannaHealth also provides cannabis-related education and workshops. The business started in New Haven and now has locations around Connecticut, and in Baltimore, Philadelphia and Washington D.C. Smith-Bolden said she is the first Black woman to open and operate a cannabis business in Connecticut.
Also Wednesday, the City Plan Commission approved the site plan and coastal site plan for a cannabis retail facility at 1041 State St. The applicant for that facility is David Salinas of Let’s Grow Hartford LLC, which got special permit approval earlier this year.
