Florida-based Trulieve Holdings is looking to build a retail marijuana store at 254 Kimberly Ave. in New Haven, current site of a Dairy Queen, which would be demolished.
NEW HAVEN — A new retail cannabis store could be in the works the city’s Hill neighborhood.
Florida-based Trulieve Holdings Inc. is looking for a home in New Haven, submitting an application to the City Plan Commission seeking a permit to operate as a cannabis retailer.
The proposed store would be located at 254 Kimberly Ave., current site of a Dairy Queen, just off Ella T. Grasso Boulevard and Interstate 95. According to the application, the existing ice cream store would be demolished upon the city’s approval. The new building would be about 2,500 square feet.
The store would have nine full-time and 10 part-time employees, according to the application, and would be open Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Trulieve is based in Tallahassee and currently operates 185 cannabis retailers nationwide including one in Bristol. The company didn’t respond to a request for comment Wednesday about why it chose New Haven.
The property owner, listed as 254 Kimberly Avenue LLC., also didn’t respond to an email request for comment.
The parcel at the proposed site, which sits in an inclusionary zone, is in one of the cannabis-allowed locations according to the city’s zoning map.
The application noted that the proposed cannabis retailer would generate less traffic than the existing Dairy Queen. The applicant also said having a cannabis retailer nearby “will not have any detrimental effects on surrounding property values” while pointing to findings of studies that found residential real estate values going up when located near a newly opened cannabis outlet.
New Haven’s first recreational cannabis retailer opened earlier in January at Affinity Dispensary, formerly known as Affinity Health and Wellness, along with other sellers in the state as it became legalized.
Another possible retail cannabis store could be at the former site of Long Wharf Theatre on Sargent Drive. Insa Inc., a Massachusetts-based cannabis company, has signed a 10-year lease with the property owner and currently is navigating some zoning hurdles.
H/T: www.nhregister.com
