CUYAHOGA FALLS — Medical marijuana patients in the Akron area will soon be able to start shopping at local dispensaries.

The first dispensary in the area, Herbology, is opening in units C and D at 1220 Buchholzer Blvd., with an open house from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday.

"I welcome this new small business to our community and am thrilled that the staff members of Herbology have already volunteered to participate in our upcoming Cuyahoga River cleanup event on May 18 as a community service project for our city,” Cuyahoga Falls Mayor Don Walters said in a prepared statement.

Herbology also is opening a central Ohio location in Newark, with a grand opening also on Saturday, according to a flyer emailed to media. Representatives from Herbology were not available Thursday for comment.

The Chapel Hill-area plaza where the Herbology dispensary is located also includes Pulp Juice and Smoothie Bar, Sides to go! BBQ, Lady Jane’s Haircuts for Men and an Ambiance romance store.

Other dispensaries



As of Thursday, 13 of Ohio’s 56 licensed retail dispensaries have certificates of operation. Two other dispensaries are set to open in Summit County in the near future.

Kate Nelson, chief operating officer for Greenleaf Apothecaries, said the company’s downtown Akron location, 46 S. Summit St., is under construction on the ground floor of an empty, three-story, historic building owned by developer Tony Troppe.

She said the state inspection should happen around the end of April, and the dispensary, opening under the name The Botanist, should open soon after that.

Greenleaf Apothecaries already opened The Botanist locations in Canton and Wickliffe. Locations in Cleveland and Columbus are also slated to open soon.

Bloom Medicinals is opening a dispensary at 737 E. North St. in a former boat repair shop, on the southern edge of Akron’s North Hill neighborhood, where North Hill, Cascade Valley, Middlebury and Goodyear Heights meet near the intersection of North Street, Home Avenue and Arlington Street.

Bloom Medicinals' five Ohio locations in Akron, Columbus, Maumee, Painesville Township and Seven Mile are all set to open soon, according to its website. The company couldn’t be reached for comment.

Last September, Akron City Council unanimously approved both Akron sites, although the mayor’s planning staff and the planning commission argued before the vote that a dispensary at the Summit Street location “does not comport with the downtown arts district ... and north side entertainment.”



Marijuana in Ohio

Ohio legalized medical marijuana in 2016, but delays in its implementation meant sales didn't start until mid-January, when the first of the state’s dispensaries opened.

Between Jan. 16 — the first day of medical marijuana sales in Ohio — and March 24, 328 pounds of medical marijuana have been sold, totaling sales of $2,476,330. On the first day of sales alone, 8.7 pounds were sold, totaling sales of $75,000.

Allowable forms of medical marijuana include oils, tinctures, plant material, edibles and patches. The law prevents the use of medical marijuana through smoking or combustion, but it does allow for vaping. The state law outlines the amounts of different forms of marijuana patients are allowed to have, no more than a 90-day supply.

State-certified doctors have to recommend medical marijuana for patients to be able to buy it. In Ohio, a recommendation can run between $250 and $350. The cost for patients to register with the state is $50 annually ($25 for caregivers), which gets them a medical marijuana card to show at dispensaries.

And those costs come before patients or caregivers even purchase marijuana. Insurance doesn’t cover medical marijuana, but discounts are available for veterans and low-income patients and caregivers. According to the Columbus Dispatch, high prices keep many out of the legal cannabis market.

Under Ohio law, certified doctors can recommend medical marijuana for 21 medical conditions, including Alzheimer’s disease, cancer, chronic pain, epilepsy and post-traumatic stress disorder. As of March 13, 448 doctors have active certificates to recommend medical marijuana in Ohio, including 25 in Summit County, according to the State Medical Board of Ohio.

As of Feb. 28, 19,395 patients had registered and received recommendations to purchase medical marijuana, and 5,465 patients had purchased it, according to the state.

Ohio is one of 33 states in which marijuana is legal for medical purposes. The drug remains illegal federally, although it’s legal as a recreational drug in 10 states.

Contact Emily Mills at 330-996-3334, emills@thebeaconjournal.com and @EmilyMills818.