High Times Withdraws Permit Application for Cannabis Cup in Pueblo.

The 2016 Colorado Cannabis Cup saga appears to have come to an end and the result for prospective attendees and exhibitors is not a good one. There will be no Cannabis Cup in Colorado this year, at least not around the annual 4/20 (April 20) day of cannabis celebration.

The trouble started when High Times Magazine, the presenter of the Cannabis Cup, was denied a permit to hold the 2016 Cannabis Cup at Denver Mart, where it had been held the previous two years. Officials from Adams County, a county just to the north of Denver where the Denver Mart is located, denied the permit application citing security concerns and the open use of marijuana at the event.

High Times’ next move was to attempt to move the Cannabis Cup 120 miles south to Pueblo, Colorado. The first dates announced were for April 15-17. Then, due to the timing of their permit application in Pueblo and a law requiring a minimum of 75 days notice, it was changed to April 22-24. Pueblo County officials had said the permit decision would be expected “no later than March 23”.



One would assume that moving a large event – one that drew upwards of 100,000 people over three days last year – to another city, with less than one month’s notice, became unrealistic and High Times has now been forced to cancel the event.

Statement from High Times about the cancellation of Colorado Cannabis Cup.

Yesterday, High Times released the following statement on their Cannabis Cup website:

As you know, there has been a great deal of uncertainty about the annual HIGH TIMES Cannabis Cup in Colorado. In the past two weeks, we have attempted to secure a permit for the Cannabis Cup in Pueblo, which would have enabled HIGH TIMES to host the event there in April. However, over this past weekend, we have decided to suspend our pursuit of a permit. As HIGH TIMES proceeds through the permit approval process, our foremost commitment is always to create the highest quality and safest event possible for our attendees, our partners and the cannabis industry. We appreciate the efforts of the local community to expedite the process, and we respect the need for all parties involved to have confidence in all operational aspects of the event. We remain committed to supporting the historic Colorado cannabis industry and look forward to hosting a future HIGH TIMES event in Colorado.

Stay tuned to our 2016 Colorado 4/20 Celebration info page for updates on all other 420 events for the annual April celebration in Colorado.

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