NJ marijuana legalization: Are Asbury Park legal weed stores a 'win' or 'insane'?

ASBURY PARK - Michael Blades wants to open the first marijuana dispensary in the city.

He views the opportunity as a win-win for government, the wider community and his own business interests.

“I’m hoping it will provide some financial assistance to the city and state and, hopefully, it’ll be lucrative to me and my business team as well," Blades said, as you can see in the video above.

Blades, though, will have to get in line.

Since January, City Manager Michael Capabianco said, the city has received more than 30 inquiries about opening pot dispensaries in town, expected to be one of the state's hottest markets for weed.

Are you in support of a marijuana dispensary in Asbury Park? Take our poll below.

PORTRAIT: NJ marijuana legalization: Weed image problem decades in the making

Only a handful, about 10 percent, he said, have been opposed to the idea.

"We’re looking and talking to people pro and con," Mayor John Moor said.

But there is good reason for pro-weed interest to look favorably on Asbury. The city's political leadership has already signaled it support for pot dispensaries, ahead of any action in Trenton on new Gov. Phil Murphy's stated plans to legalize the recreational use of marijuana.

A majority of City Council members – four of them – told the Press that they supported allowing such dispensaries to open shop here. A fifth councilmember, Yvonne Clayton, said she supported medical marijuana but didn't know if she supported recreational use or weed businesses.

POT IN ASBURY?: NJ marijuana legalization: Asbury Park City Council open to weed dispensaries

Key community voices have also gotten behind the rare business initiative, though support is hardly universal. Some worry that legalized weed will only make Asbury a rowdier place.

Count the local NAACP among the supporters.

Adrienne Sanders, president of the Asbury Park-Neptune chapter of the NAACP, said she'd be in favor of dispensaries in the city. She hoped there would be broad opportunities for ownership.

"We definitely support marijuana legalization in New Jersey," Sanders said, noting that the state conference of the NAACP backs making weed legal as well.

"We hope that also we would see a reinvestment in our inner cities (from weed tax proceeds) and also market participation opportunities," Sanders said. "We would hope that there would be increased opportunities for minority businesses to participate."

She added that she'd like to see any legalization of marijuana come with restorative social justice measures such as automatic expungement for people with marijuana-related criminal records.

"I think it would probably lessen a lot of the crime issues," Sanders said.

A chamber of commerce official said the organization is still waiting for more information – even as hundreds of weed-minded entrepreneurs have filled local convention halls with an eye toward doing weed business in New Jersey.

Sylvia Sylvia-Cioffi, executive director of the Asbury Park Chamber of Commerce, said she had received some inquiries from businesses outside the city asking "what Asbury’s perspective is going to be on opening dispensaries."

She said she refers the inquiries to City Council. Sylvia-Cioffi said the businesses that make up the chamber haven't indicated how they feel about dispensaries.

"I haven't heard a word from the local business community," she said.

It is hardly any surprise that Asbury would be weed friendly – as least as far as the political leadership goes.

It is frequently viewed as the most progressive and diverse locale Shore town. It also enjoys a high profile – no pun intended – having been named the "Coolest Small Town in America" by Budget Travel Magazine in 2017.

But Teretha Jones, who volunteers with several community organizations in Asbury, said she is opposed to the idea of locating a dispensary in the city.

"I think the whole idea is insane," Jones said. "The city is looking at dollars and dimes and revenue, they’re not looking at the societal issues in Asbury Park."

The city, despite a recent renaissance, remains home to intractable crime and poverty. Its schools are among the state's worst performing.

Jones said she was concerned a marijuana dispensary could contribute to a rowdy atmosphere and spark even more bad behavior from the tourists who flock to the Shore.

"The summer and weekend crowds who come to Asbury Park have all kinds of antics, misbehavior, drunkenness and foolishness," she said.

Weed faces more push back beyond Asbury's borders.

So far, at least seven Shore communities have said they are considering banning recreational weed sales, including Middletown, Berkeley, Point Pleasant Beach, Seaside Heights, Lavallette, Oceanport and West Long Branch. The video below explains some of the image problems marijuana has faced over the years.

“We have police officers in all our schools, we have our D.A.R.E. program that teaches kids about the long-term effects drugs can have on you,” Berkeley Mayor Carmen Amato Jr. said. “And then, when they’re taking a bus home from school, they’re passing a marijuana dispensary? I just think that’s sending the wrong message.”

Angela Abhez-Anderson, president of the Asbury Park Board of Education, declined to comment when reached by the Press.

Board of Education member Joe Grillo said he had no qualms about allowing a dispensary in Asbury Park.

"I expect the state to roll this out, once the governor signs it, in a way that’s thoughtful, that is highly regulated and that is going to be compassionate to the people that do need it," Grillo said.

"It's not going to be available to kids, just like alcohol isn't available to kids," Grillo said. "And they get in trouble if they get caught with it."

Blades, 36, who lives in Asbury Park, met with Mayor Moor briefly last week.

Moor said he's held several meetings with people interested in starting dispensaries, as well as other community leaders. But he stressed that the meetings were strictly for informational purposes.

Moor said the city is awaiting state legislation and guidance on how and where a marijuana dispensary might be able to operate. "We're basically in a holding pattern," Moor said.

Getting the licenses will be competitive.

The revised version of the legalization bill under consideration in Trenton is expected to call for 80 retail marijuana licenses, two for each legislative district. One expert put the odds of receiving one of New Jersey's licenses as high as 15 to 1.

Blades said he didn't think a dispensary would detract from the community. Blades, who works as director of operations for a law firm, said it's important to him that companies that operate dispensaries have ties to the locality.

More: NJ marijuana legalization: How to get a marijuana license in cutthroat weed market

He opposes letting out-of-state businesses and corporations enter the New Jersey marketplace.

Ideally, Blades said, he'd like to open a dispensary on the city's thriving east side, near the restaurants and art galleries that get a lot of foot traffic during the peak summer months.

He has done some homework, traveling to pot-friendly Las Vegas, Portland, Oregon, and Colorado to study some of the challenges and opportunities of running a dispensary.

"I think that if it's run properly and has proper security it doesn't pose any more risk than a bar or liquor store," said Blades. "That kind of drives the night life here and the business. I don't see why a dispensary would be any different."

Austin Bogues 732-643-4009; abogues@gannettnj.com