🔒With numerous cannabis businesses eyeing Hartford, city could become an industry hub

After more than a decade of living in Texas, Hartford native Mark Christie is moving back to the city to pursue his dream of opening a cannabis cultivation facility and creating jobs and opportunity for people who grew up in the same neighborhoods he did.

Christie is among 16 social equity applicants recently chosen to move forward with plans to open a cannabis grow operation in the state. His company, FRC Holdings LLC, is looking at city-owned land on Homestead Avenue to build a new 50,000-square-foot cultivation facility.

And he’s not the only one targeting Hartford for his operations. While the recreational marijuana industry has yet to officially launch, at least a half-dozen business ventures are targeting Hartford for a range of operations, including dispensaries, grow facilities and even a cannabis campus, raising the prospect that the Capital City could become a hot spot for the emerging industry.

“Once this thing kicks in, more than anywhere else in the state, I think Hartford is in the best position” to be a leader in the industry, Christie said.

Of course, efforts to grow the industry also face potential roadblocks. The first recreational dispensary officially proposed in Hartford on Front Street, at 89 Arch St., has faced opposition from the Capital Region Development Authority, which has zoning power over the site. Frustrated, a partner in the proposed dispensary said publicly the business will locate in another city instead.

‘Intentional and thoughtful’ zoning

Christie grew up in Hartford’s Blue Hills neighborhood, a north end section of the city designated as an area disproportionately impacted by the war on drugs. That leaves it open to social equity cannabis businesses. Christie went to Hampton University, a historically Black college in Virginia, to get his degree in finance before working as a commercial lender. After years in banking, he shifted toward his real dream of becoming an entrepreneur.

“I had an idea that I wanted to change the sports management industry,” Christie said. “I felt like the team approach to client management was much more effective than just having an individual agent.”

With that idea, Player’s Choice International was born. Christie’s sports management agency let clients keep more money in their pockets by helping them negotiate their own deals. His first big client was UConn great and NBA Hall of Famer Ray Allen.

“When Ray negotiated the $72 million deal (in 1999 with the Milwaukee Bucks) without the use of an agent, that was my concept put in play,” Christie said.

Christie eventually left the sports management field because he said it was taxing on his marriage and personal life; he’s been pursuing other career opportunities since then. He’s lived in Texas for 15 years, but now has plans to return to Hartford.

“Legacy is really driving that decision,” Christie said. “I’m a north end guy — it’s not just talking about social equity, you’ve got to be about it.”

Christie said he wants young people in Hartford to be able to look at his story and see a man who grew up in their neighborhoods and made it big in business.

Hartford City Councilwoman Tiana Hercules is also vying to open a grow facility and dispensary in Hartford. She was one of five Hartford residents to recently gain social equity status to move forward with plans to open a cultivation establishment.

Hercules said Hartford’s central location in the state and progressive leadership in terms of “intentional and thoughtful” cannabis zoning guidelines, are positioning the city to be a major industry player.

While many municipalities have banned or placed moratoriums on cannabis companies, Hartford officials have largely embraced the industry, drafting guidelines that allow retailers to locate in the downtown and Main Street districts as well as other parts of the city. Cultivation facilities may open in industrial and commercial-industrial districts.

“I think [Hartford] has a great opportunity to be a leader in the industry,” said Hercules, who is a criminal defense attorney by trade. “This will be a whole new revenue stream for the city that can be used for redevelopment, beautification, education, youth programming. It just allows Hartford to really continue on this path forward of revitalizing itself and becoming an attractive place to live, work and play.”

Hercules also has submitted a social equity application to open a retail business in Hartford. Dispensary licenses have not yet been awarded.

Prospect list

There are at least two other entrepreneurs looking to launch Hartford dispensaries.

Derrick Gibbs, CEO of Middletown-based homecare and behavioral health provider Change Incorporated, submitted plans to open a dispensary on Front Street, at 89 Arch St., in the former 2,500-square-foot home of Blind Pig Pizza.

However, that proposal faces opposition from the Capital Region Development Authority, which has zoning authority over the Front Street property and has argued a dispensary doesn’t fit with the area’s family-friendly environment. Gibbs told the Hartford Courant that he was frustrated by the opposition and he and his partners would consider a location in another city.

Another Hartford resident, Kevin Henry, is eyeing the Parkville neighborhood for a dispensary. Henry submitted an application in May to open a retail outlet in a 4,380-square-foot building at 1396 Park St. The city’s Planning and Zoning Commission approved a special permit for his plan July 26.

In addition, Rita Castucci from Southend Harvest House LLC has submitted an application to open a cannabis micro cultivator business at 722 Wethersfield Ave.

In June, serial entrepreneur David Salinas announced he was partnering with Hartford resident Janice Flemming-Butler to launch Let’s Grow Hartford, a “cannabis campus” that could house several different brands and businesses. The two weren’t approved for social equity cultivator status, but Salinas said they are still moving forward with their campus concept. They also have other lottery license applications pending.

“One of the reasons I’m excited about Hartford is because of potential partnerships with UConn,” Salinas said. “UConn’s cannabis center is an unspoken hero, in my mind, in the region.”

He said having higher education entities willing to research and provide data on the science and business of cannabis is a huge asset to the state and Hartford in particular.

Salinas, who runs the popular District co-working space in New Haven, is also an investor in 1906, a Colorado-based cannabis company that specializes in THC and CBD pills. Earlier this year, 1906 received a $1.25 million investment from Connecticut Innovations, the state’s quasi-public venture arm, and announced it will be relocating to Connecticut.

The company is expected to have a Hartford presence, according to Connecticut Innovations.

“I honestly think Hartford is a winner,” Salinas said.

Cannabis tourism

Hartford City Councilman T.J. Clarke II said restrictions on cultivators and retail establishments in suburban towns give cities an edge in attracting new cannabis businesses.

“It’s all about social equity, right?” Clarke said. “So all roads, to me, are leading to Hartford and the more urban cities.”

Clarke said he thinks the city’s Planning and Zoning Commission has done a thorough job of outlining where cannabis businesses can operate. Tax revenue and job creation will mean Hartford can “reap the benefits” of the legal cannabis law, he said, so the city should do what it can to support that.

Hartford Mayor Luke Bronin has been supportive of the cannabis industry, but declined to comment for this story.

By establishing welcoming zoning laws, Hartford has an edge in becoming a leader in the industry, said Daniel Glissman, an attorney with Hartford law firm MacDermid Reynolds & Glissman P.C.

“That’s a really important step — people actually know where they can and can’t go,” Glissman said.

He said one hurdle for potential businesses in the city will be navigating the buffer requirement between cannabis operations. With limited space, retail stores will have to spread out or receive special variances to open near each other.

“But otherwise, the warehouse stock is decent in Hartford,” Glissman said of the potential for cultivation operations within the city’s limits. “Those will be good projects.”

Christie, the aspiring marijuana grower, said “cannabis tourism” also has real potential in Hartford, with the ability to host events and conventions for the industry.

“Connecticut and Hartford have this great entrepreneurial opportunity right now,” Christie said.