Starting on Saturday, medical cannabis dispensaries in Las Vegas and other areas in Nevada are going to begin selling recreational cannabis to the public. Adults (anyone over the age of 21) in the area who are interested in using cannabis for recreational use are going to be able to go in and purchase the product from a number of different dispensaries.
For those who are 21 or older and who do make a purchase, they are allowed to buy up to 1 ounce or one-eighth of an ounce of edibles or concentrates. They will start selling right at 12:01 am.
Many say that this is going to be a “game changer” for Las Vegas and that it will further contribute to strengthening the image that Las Vegas has already fostered for itself, of it being the ideal party town. Lawmakers voted last year to move forward with legalizing cannabis there and the changes go into effect on July 1st of this year.
The new rules are going to treat cannabis similar to alcohol and only existing dispensaries and liquor distributors will be permitted to sell weed for the first few months. There is still some uncertainty however surrounding issues like the transportation of the product, but there is a lot of enthusiasm over the move to go in this direction and accept rather than prohibit this plant.
A number of dispensaries are going to be holding celebrations, fireworks, giving out food and other goods, in order to celebrate the new change.
But when it comes to getting the word out about the move to recreational sales, that might not be as easy as some would prefer. Despite the recent changes in Nevada, cannabis advertisements are allegedly prohibited from any medium where someone younger than 21 years old might come across the advertisement. So that is going to severely restrict the marketing that the dispensaries and companies can do in the area.
The cannabis market in the US is already impressive but many industry experts think that Nevada is going to be the most lucrative area for the cannabis industry yet. Some think that it might not be long before we see sales there far surpass those seen in Oregon, Washington, or Colorado.
It's projected that cannabis sales in Nevada might surpass $630 million by 2020.
It's expected that the new changes for recreational Las Vegas are going to spur a tourism boom in the area and some have even gone as far as to suggest that this will make Vegas the “new Amsterdam.” But they don't expect the surging popularity to last however, especially since California is set to roll out their own recreational selling at the beginning of next year. It's assumed that the more progress the legalization movement makes, that the less reason people will have for traveling to a state like Vegas or Colorado specifically for the purposes of having a cannabis-friendly holiday.
Pics:
Pixabay
Sources:
http://www.newsweek.com/las-vegas-will-be-amsterdam-steroids-recreational-weed-sales-begin-weekend-630144
http://www.rgj.com/story/news/college/2017/06/28/nevada-makes-emergency-changes-marijuana-edibles-law/437360001/
https://www.leafly.com/news/industry/emergency-rules-vegas-gears-nevadas-july-1-cannabis-launch
http://vegasseven.com/2017/06/29/people-get-ready-recreational-cannabis-comes-las-vegas/
http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/nevada-goes-green-recreational-marijuana-alcohol-industry-wants-piece-pot-n778261
https://newfrontierdata.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/NV-State-Profile-Release-FINAL-1.pdf
http://www.marketwatch.com/story/nevada-set-to-start-selling-recreational-marijuana-on-july-1-2017-06-29
http://www.cbsnews.com/news/welcome-to-legal-pot-las-vegas-style/