After years of legal battles and bureaucratic hurdles, Miami has officially welcomed its first medical marijuana dispensary.
Nearly a decade after Florida voters approved medical marijuana in 2016, Ayr Wellness opened its doors in Midtown at 3160 N. Miami Ave. on Friday, January 10. The inauguration of this medical marijuana dispensary marked a significant milestone for the city, which has been an outlier in embracing dispensaries despite statewide legalization.
Amid Legalization, Miami Was in Prohibition
While cities across Florida adapted to the 2016 constitutional amendment that legalized medical marijuana, Miami remained steadfast in its resistance. The city argued that the federal Controlled Substances Act (CSA), which classifies cannabis as an illegal drug, superseded state law. This interpretation stalled any progress in issuing permits for dispensaries within city limits.
This resistance positioned Miami behind neighboring municipalities, which had established zoning regulations to accommodate dispensaries. In 2021, real estate investor and entrepreneur Romie Chaudhari filed a lawsuit challenging the city’s restrictive stance. This act set the stage for a series of legal confrontations on medical marijuana.
A Legal Battle
Chaudhari’s efforts to establish a dispensary near Park West’s nightlife hub faced significant pushback. Despite a federal judge and Miami’s planning and zoning appeals board supporting him, the city zoning director, under guidance from the city attorney’s office, repeatedly denied Chaudhari’s appeal in favor of dispensary operations.
Resistance to medical marijuana also came from city commissioners, particularly Commissioner Manolo Reyes and Commissioner Joe Carollo. Both raised fears of increased drug access for children and impaired drivers, often framing the issue with inflammatory rhetoric. Carollo likened the dispensary approval process to a “Cheech and Chong” ordinance, while Reyes voiced concerns over fraudulent medical marijuana cards and alleged societal impacts on marginalized communities.
Despite these objections, in May 2022, the Miami City Commission rejected the zoning office’s appeal against Chaudhari, granting him the certificate of use required to open a dispensary. This decision opened the door for other companies to seek similar approvals.
Ayr Wellness Breaks Ground
The path to opening Ayr Wellness’s Midtown dispensary has been quite challenging. The process, spanning more than five years, involved securing leases, obtaining permits, and navigating appeals.
“It’s pretty exciting. This has been a five-plus-year process since we started planning this particular dispensary,” said Rob Vanisko, vice president of public engagement for Ayr Wellness. “From lease signing to all the approvals to the appeals to actually be able to get this open has been quite the process.”
Ayr Wellness acquired Liberty Health Sciences for $372 million in 2021, significantly expanding its footprint in Florida. With the Midtown location, the company now operates 67 dispensaries statewide, addressing what it identifies as an underserved market in Miami.
Addressing Misinformation
Despite ongoing resistance from some city officials, proponents of medical marijuana have pointed to studies debunking claims about its adverse effects.
“There’s a lot of good studies that are out there that show that youth incidents of using cannabis have decreased, which is not what people expected,” said Jamie Mendola, chief revenue and development officer at Ayr Wellness.
Mendola emphasized the importance of regulated access in meeting demand safely. “In any market that has underserved regulated access with demand that is there, the demand will be met one way or another. It’s either the traditional market or it’s the intoxicating hemp market or its other substances in almost every case that are going to be unregulated, untested, and less safe,” he added.
The Road Ahead
The opening of Miami’s first medical marijuana dispensary represents a shift in the city’s stance on cannabis, achieved through persistent legal and public pressure.
With a dispensary-to-population ratio previously as high as 62,800 to one, Ayr Wellness’s entry into the Miami market is expected to significantly improve access for patients seeking medical marijuana.
While Commissioners Carollo and Reyes remained steadfast in their opposition, most of the city’s leadership ultimately conceded to the state’s legalization framework.
