HOLYOKE — East Coast Pharms, the first medicinal marijuana dispensary and cultivating facility in Holyoke, celebrated its grand opening with a ribbon-cutting Friday.
The opening marked the end of a four-year journey to become operational, said Adam Raleigh, the general manager of East Coast Pharms.
“We couldn’t be more excited to be open in the city of Holyoke,” Raleigh said. “We’re excited to serve the community of Holyoke and the surrounding areas of Massachusetts.”
East Coast Pharms, situated in Holyoke’s Springdale neighborhood, is a vertically integrated facility with cultivation, retail, production and manufacturing units.
The facility cultivates 10,000 square feet of canopy and uses an extraction lab that produces cannabis concentrates without using hydrocarbons or solvents. The company offers a range of products, including edibles.
“We are the first and only open medical dispensary in Holyoke,” Raleigh stated. “Our retail is licensed for both adult use and the medical market, which we couldn’t be more excited about.”
The in-house cannabis takes 116 days from clone to harvest and is hand-trimmed.
Raleigh described East Coast Pharms as a “diamond in the rough,” located at 630 Beaulieu St. “Once you find us, you’re going to come back,” he said.
Mayor’s welcome
Mayor Joshua A. Garcia welcomed East Coast Pharms to Holyoke as the cannabis sector continues to expand in the city. He joined Hash Patel, the company’s CEO and president, for the ceremony.
“We want to leverage any opportunity to expand growth, economic development, tax base and jobs. This is just another piece to the puzzle,” Garcia said.
Garcia considers the facility a positive economic sign for Holyoke. “This is another win, and we hope to continue to facilitate more business interest in the city, be it marijuana or other industries, because Holyoke is ready for business,” he stated.
Jordan Hart, executive director of the Greater Holyoke Chamber, sees the weed business as a significant driver of economic development and growth in the city.
“The cannabis industry has been an anchoring industry, capable of revitalizing many of our city’s dilapidated and long-vacant properties,” Hart said.
However, Hart cautioned against relying too heavily on one sector. “While we don’t want to put all of our eggs in one basket, it’s nice that we have these opportunities to provide jobs and health care,” she said.
Hart emphasized the dual role of cannabis as both a recreational substance and a medicine. “A lot of folks use marijuana for different kinds of ailments.
State Sen. John Velis, D-Westfield, acknowledged the progress the cannabis industry has made in Massachusetts, despite ongoing challenges posed by federal restrictions.
“Since the industry’s inception, it’s been expanding across medicinal, recreational and cultivation sectors,” Velis said. “However, the legalization in the Commonwealth initially did not fully consider the federal government’s stance and the obstacles that would arise from it.”
Velis was joined by state Rep. Patricia Duffy, D-Holyoke, and city councilors Jenny Rivera, Juan Anderson-Burgos and Israel Rivera.
Source: Mass Live
