On January 18, the Town of Newburgh Planning Board officially approved a special use permit for the project Curaleaf Newburgh. This special permit grants Curaleaf the ability to operate an adult-use cannabis retail facility alongside their existing medical dispensary. A required public hearing that night yielded no comments.

Under the State Quality Environmental Review Act, this project would be listed as a Type II action. A Type II action means that the project would not have significant impacts on the environment and would not require further environmental review.

Specific conditions for the project, explained by Planning Board Attorney Dominic Cordisco, mainly focused around the approval of the special use permit granted to Curaleaf referencing the town’s zoning.

Other fees for the project would need to be addressed by the applicant.

“This is a special permit, it is issued to this particular applicant. It can’t be transferred, can’t be sold. It is for the operation of this facility by this applicant. It also cannot be enlarged,” he said. “If the New York State law changes in the future and something else becomes available that would not typically be available, you would have to come back before this board for an amendment of the existing approval.”

Curaleaf’s facility is located at 8 North Plank Road and primarily operated as a medical cannabis dispensary. Back in October 2023, Curaleaf presented to the planning board requesting a special use permit though they did not have a license at that time for adult-use retail.

A Certificate of Licensure from the New York State Office of Cannabis Management was officially issued to Curaleaf NY, LLC on November, 17, 2023 and expires on November 16, 2025. The license type describes that Curaleaf would be recognized as an Adult-Use Retail Dispensary.

The New York State Office of Cannabis Management was first established with the passage of the Cannabis Law in March of 2021. The state law legalized cannabis for adults ages 21 and older. The role of this state office is to oversee “the adult-use, medical, and cannabinoid hemp industries in New York, as well as establishing the regulations governing how and when a person or business may apply for and receive a license.”

Curaleaf has been working on their additional building extension but according to Robert Sciarrone, Senior Vice President, East Regional Lead for Curaleaf, he expects the remodel to be fully completed within the coming weeks. The expansion of the current site was approved on April 21, 2022.

The building addition will feature a new sales floor and product vault with additional parking. The footprint of the building now increases to 3,500 square feet. More space at the point of sales allows for a more personal and private check-out. Curaleaf currently operates the state allowed maximum number of dispensary facilities, four in total. Therefore, there are no plans for future locations. Sciarrone also said that Curaleaf will be offering as soon as January 19 delivery access to adult use customers. “Delivery is free for adult use customers and patients, and is available to anyone within fifteen miles of our Newburgh store, with a minimum purchase order of $150,” he said. “We’re also thrilled to be offering same day delivery to anyone who makes a purchase before 2 p.m. ET.”

Planning board members were equally satisfied with the project amendments and for the applicant working with the town during the process. The adult usage of cannabis on-site is not intended at all with the project. Curaleaf and the neighboring Alexis Diner also share a dumpster on-site but it was clarified back in October that no cannabis products are disposed of in that shared dumpster. The diner is also in the midst of site work to its own parking lot.