Six more pot shops approved for Long Island

Two Westbury natives — now a rapper and Catholic Health executive — as well as a film producer and five friends who bonded over an interest in cannabis won licenses Wednesday to open recreational pot shops on Long Island.

The state Cannabis Control Board voted unanimously to issue 30 "conditional" retail licenses, including six tied to the Long Island region. Before considering all dispensary applications, regulators are issuing conditional credentials to New Yorkers who have successfully run businesses, despite having convictions under the old marijuana laws. Entrepreneurs may also qualify if one of their relatives has a pot-related offense on their record.

The board granted licenses to:

Lyfted Essentials, LLC, a business launched by two childhood friends in Westbury; Budding Industry Group, LLC, a collaboration among Long Islanders with backgrounds in cannabis, hemp, massage therapy and acupuncture; and Kushmart NY, LLC, a firm started by a Manhattan film producer who learned about Long Island while  scouting shooting locations. The other local licensees — NYCC1 LLC, Top Shelf Aficionados Inc and Natural Wonders Cannabis — either declined to speak with Newsday or couldn't be reached for comment. 

The licenses will allow businesses to open in towns that have chosen to allow recreational pot shops — Babylon, Brookhaven, Riverhead and Southampton —  but the credentials aren't tied to specific sites. Regulators have now issued 13 of up to 20 conditional licenses available to businesses on the Island.

One of the credentials went to Lyfted Essentials, started by Gary Perodin, vice president of neuroscience and behavioral health services at Catholic Health, and Jonathan Whitaker, a musician who performs under the name Jaeo Draftpick. The two men said they grew up in a part of Westbury with high marijuana arrest rates. State-sanctioned sales will ensure the next generation in their neighborhood isn't saddled with criminal records, they said. Black New Yorkers were 15 times more likely and Latino residents were eight times more likely to be arrested for marijuana than white people over the past 30 years, according to state regulators. Perodin and Whitaker are both of Haitian descent. 

"Where we come from, a lot of these kids get locked up," said Whitaker, currently a Carle Place resident. "It (cannabis) got me in a little bit of trouble."

Whitaker said pot convictions made finding a good job challenging. So he leaned into his love of music and launched an apparel line, which pays homage to Long Island with "51631"-branded hats, swimwear, athletic items and sweatsuits.

Lyfted Essentials will cater to all New Yorkers, from recreational consumers to those wanting to treat health issues. In addition to cannabis, the company will sell natural remedies, essential oils and crystals, said Perodin, of Westbury. He previously helped Northwell Health get involved with medical marijuana and has seen how cannabis can treat conditions without causing as many side effects as pharmaceutical alternatives, Perodin said.

A multigenerational group of Long Islanders launched Budding Industry Group, said Amber Bennett, a 26-year-old with a cannabis consulting company, whose oldest business associate is 59. Her colleagues include: Lisa Ripi, a wellness counselor licensed to perform massages and acupuncture; Leslie Rodriguez, a massage therapist and hemp retailer; Anthony Traina, who owns a dog breeding company; and Sam Jurist, who has a professional background in helping cannabis firms grow.

Delivery plan in works

The women-owned firm plans to start with delivery “as soon as possible,” Bennett said. Budding Industry Group intends to focus on organic and solvent-less items, which are manufactured with heat and pressure, rather than relying on ethanol, butane or other substances to extract the THC compound that produces a high.

“We’re family friends who came together over our love and passion for the plant, and obviously an opportunity, that we just couldn’t pass up,” said Bennett, of Huntington.

Kushmart NY is run by James Adames, who said police stopped-and-frisked him many times when he was growing up in Washington Heights. After serving time on Rikers Island for marijuana, Adames said he enrolled in a Made in NY training program for film and television production. Adames worked his way up from interning to producing, and then launched his own company, FreedomLand Productions, which he said travels all over for documentaries created by WarnerBros UK.

The dispensary will allow him to stay closer to his family, and potentially, train and employ others leaving prison. 

“I worked as a location manager … traveling the whole New York State, looking for locations,” said Adames, adding that he contributed to the 2011-12 "Pan Am" television series on ABC about the early days of the jet industry, which was shot in the region. “I just fell in love with Long Island.”

By Sarina Trangle

sarina.trangle@newsday.comSarinaTrangle

Sarina Trangle covers affordability and cost of living issues and other business topics. She previously worked as an editor and reporter at amNewYork.