You can’t buy pot for fun in Connecticut, but provided you don’t bring it back over the border, you can now purchase at two stores in Massachusetts.
Marijuana was available for commercial and recreational sale Tuesday for the first time in Massachusetts.
Vit Reudgen drove up to Northampton, Mass. from Rockville. He waited at the back of the line – in the cold November rain – around the corner and about 400 feet from the entrance to the New England Treatment Access (NETA) store.
“I’ve been waiting 57-and-a-half years,” Reudgen said. “You could’ve cut my legs off today and I would’ve walked up in my elbows.”
Reudgen’s here for a strain of cannabis called “White Widow.” He points to the line and the demand for marijuana as something Connecticut should look at.
“We’re going to lose all this revenue up here [to Massachusetts],” Reudgen said. “What the hell else are we going to do next? We had to open up package stores on Sundays [to generate more revenue].”
Enfield’s Beverly Pajor vapes cartridges and consumes edibles. She said she does it to help with anxiety.
“There’s this huge stigma attached to consuming marijuana and I think that’s unfortunate because it can be useful for quite a few purposes,” Pajor said.
Austin Fortier of Chester, Mass. bought about $200 worth of pre-rolled joints, wax, and flower. He’s happy to see legal sales.
“You know more of what you’re getting. You know what I mean?” Fortier said. “Everything gets lab-tested and all of that, so I think it’s a safer alternative to some people.”
Connecticut residents are subject to fines for the possession of small amounts of marijuana and they could be arrested for driving under the influence for weed consumption.
Norton Arbelaez, NETA’s director of government services, asked Connecticut residents to respect the law.
“Connecticut has not changed its laws yet,” Arbelaez said. “I’m sure many people on the Connecticut side of the line would like to see those laws changed. We would ask people to respect the process in Connecticut.”
Recreational users are limited to a total of one ounce of whatever form of marijuana products they were purchasing. NETA representatives said customers aren’t allowed to consume on-site.
