Marijuana May Be Legal in Kalamazoo But is There Too Much of It?

I have to admit, it was quite a culture shock (if that's even the right term) when I moved here and saw billboard after billboard on the side of the road advertising legal marijuana sales.

Back in Florida, marijuana was barely legal and even then it was for medical use only. Moving to Kalamazoo and seeing the sheer number of marijuana dispensaries was surprising. But, now local dispensary owners are concerned that the market may be becoming oversaturated.

As reported by WWMT News Channel 3, the city of Kalamazoo has issued about 24 adult use permits for the sale of marijuana products. However, they're not all currently in use. Doing a quick google search, it looks like there's a dozen or more right here in Kalamazoo. Some companies have multiple locations:

There's even more in Battle Creek:

And there are brand new dispensaries opening constantly. Just yesterday Skymint Premium Cannabis celebrated their opening in Portage.

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But, more choices aren't necessarily a bad thing right? That's why we have a dozen restaurants and breweries so people can have a variety to choose from. Of course, if all of the restaurants were offering the same thing...I could see how that would get tricky.

Thomas Farrell, CEO of The Refinery, expressed some concern to WWMT News Channel 3 saying that business was good but because of those 24 issued permits:

We're gonna probably be one of the biggest oversaturated markets

However, the City of Kalamazoo's assistant city planner, Peter Eldridge, said there are measures in place to prevent that very thing. According to Eldridge, 1000 feet is required to separate dispensaries,

creating a natural dispersion.

Personally, I've yet to hear any fellow Kalamazoo citizens complain about the number of dispensaries in this small area. In fact, its quite the opposite. Most have worn it like a badge of honor pointing out their favorites or commenting on how crazy it is that so many have popped up in the past year.

There's an interactive map provided by the Michigan Marijuana Regulatory Agency if you're interested to see which towns and businesses have been issues what kind of permits and licenses.

And, if you want to boost your favorite local dispensary we're currently conducting a poll on southwest Michigan's favorite recreational dispensary. It's completely up to you, the listener/reader, to vote and you can do so twice a day. Find your favorite and give them a vote below: