Mississippi
$40k in fees, land surveyors, and a lot of research: How Columbus sisters finally got their cannabis dispensary approved
COLUMBUS – Denisha and Amber Glenn noticed a complete future inside an deserted Tuesday Morning.
The shuttered retail retailer was the proper residence for the sisters’ enterprise enterprise: Holistika. Of their imaginative and prescient, Holistika could be one in every of Mississippi’s first medical marijuana dispensaries.
The sisters already had success as founders of their very own small human sources firm. With hashish, they did their homework.
“We began the planning course of again in 2020,” stated Amber Glenn. “We had been properties, placing collectively a marketing strategy. With us being Black girls, we knew there’d be challenges… so we’ve got – since day one – accomplished every thing accurately and by the books.”
They visited out-of-state expos, toured main dispensaries, and studied the state’s Medical Hashish Act, which outlined the burgeoning program. They met early with a metropolis inspector, making certain their store’s architect plan accounted for each plumbing and electrical requirement.
They had been two self-made enterprise girls, common Mississippians, navigating an trade largely dominated by white males and deep-pocket partnerships. A 2017 survey from Marijuana Enterprise Each day discovered that lower than 20% of marijuana enterprise homeowners are minorities.
“We’d wish to meet with corporations – white males – and they’d discuss to us on the telephone, however once they noticed us in particular person, they’d completely disappear,” Denisha Glenn stated.
The snags stored coming.
After they couldn’t discover a native land surveyor to take them as a shopper, they tracked down one prepared to journey from two hours away. They had been meticulous, wanting a bullet-proof software able to add the second the state opened the net portal.
None of it was sufficient. A competitor down the road uploaded their software supplies sooner. And within the battle for dispensary licenses throughout Mississippi, pace took priority.
The primary wave of licenses went to a number of the budding market’s largest spenders – an lawyer who teamed up with an trade insider from main hashish state Colorado; a person who owns a non-public airplane constitution firm; individuals who have invested tens of millions already on cultivation websites and to launch their very own empires, making use of for a number of dispensaries without delay.
The Glenn sisters stated they had been solely conscious of 1 different Black lady in Mississippi working to get a dispensary license. There’s seemingly a small quantity general, however the state’s public checklist of licensed dispensaries doesn’t specify an proprietor’s race.
Shedding out on the license stung. However it was the months of software limbo and unanswered questions that actually damage, the sisters stated. They anticipated a swift rejection so they might transfer on and apply for one more location. As a substitute, they are saying, it took months for Holistika to get a proper rejection and its $40,000 in charges returned so they might attempt for a brand new location.
“Regardless of the place in life, the general public will such as you extra if they’ve entry to you,” stated Denisha Glenn, reflecting on greater than two months it took to get Holistika’s first software rejected so she and her sister may apply for one more retailer. “However it simply looks like it’s an absence of personnel and an absence of coaching.”
In an announcement to Mississippi As we speak, the Mississippi Division of Income stated it responds “well timed to all inquiries, together with these from the non-public and authorized representatives” – together with Holistika – “normally inside one enterprise day.”
The Mississippi Division of Income has issued 139 dispensary licenses because it started accepting functions at first of July. The division says it processes the functions within the order they had been acquired.
“The applying portal licensing software program time stamped the receipt of every software out to the 100th millisecond,” MDOR spokespersonwoman Lexus Burns stated in an announcement.
Milliseconds counted when functions first flooded into MDOR’s portal. With Mississippi’s legislation dictating no dispensary might be inside 1,500 ft of one another, staking territory was very important.
Utilizing the first-come-first serve system is regular inside the trade, stated Jackson-based hashish lawyer Slates Veazey.
“I wrestle to determine a extra truthful approach,” he stated.
However the legislation additionally says candidates needs to be issued licenses inside 30 days of receiving an software. The identical, in concept, goes for these being rejected.
“That’s essential info to have,” Veazey stated. “In case you are getting rejected you have to search for different properties. You recognize you’ll be able to transfer on. And the legislation provides candidates a short while interval to problem a license willpower.”
Denisha and Amber Glenn stated they misplaced worthwhile time that might have meant the distinction between nailing down one other property earlier than a dispensary competitor edged them out for a second time.
Tucked subsequent to her present bakery, Nicole Huff has a roughly 1,200-square-foot area she’s working to open as Wildflower dispensary. It’s about 1,300 ft down the road from the place the Glenn sisters hoped to open contained in the previous Tuesday Morning area.
“July 5, 8 o’clock, I used to be right here,” Huff stated from the desk in her bakery’s workplace, “dragging and dropping every thing into (the portal).”
13 days later, Huff was advised her software was authorized. However first there was a formatting difficulty together with her land survey; she had 24 hours to have it redone. She wound up among the many first individuals within the state to be issued a dispensary license.
“I’m so happy with the State Division of Income,” Huff stated. “They’re crossing each ‘t’ and dotting each ‘i.’”
She stated she cashed out her 401(ok) and bought her shares to fund her dispensary enterprise. Whereas her contractor filed building permits, Amber and Denisha Glenn scoured Columbus for another location.
“We needed a back-up for the back-up,” Denisha Glenn stated.
They spent $8,500 on land surveys to find out that any hopeful places had been the best distances from church buildings, colleges, daycares and Wildflower.
However touchdown on the best new spot nonetheless didn’t remedy their issues. Their first software was nonetheless at a standstill.
Denisha Glenn stated it was an October name to the media spokesperson on the state Division of Well being – which handles the licenses for cultivation, medical doctors, and sufferers – that lastly acquired her in contact with the best individuals, together with Hashish Program Director Kris Jones Adcock.
“As soon as we acquired related to the best individuals who may make these choices, they had been very type and really useful,” she stated.
If an applicant’s bid for a license is denied as a result of one other dispensary was authorized for license of their zone within the interval after they utilized, they’re able to get the $40,000 in software charges returned.
“The Mississippi State Division of Well being understands the complexities and challenges of beginning such a program,” stated spokesperson Liz Sharlot, who assisted the Glenn sisters. “We’re gratified for the entire assist and cooperation of the Division of Income. The Company is blissful to help candidates of every kind to make sure a easy course of for everybody.”
With their charges returned, on Oct. 14, the sisters utilized for a brand new license. It additionally meant letting go of the Tuesday Morning spot. They ended their lease.
The brand new spot is nearer to the place they grew up in Columbus.
“I believe our new location is a godsend,” Denisha Glenn stated. “It places us nearer to our group.”
In late October, the sisters acquired the information: Their new location was authorized.
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Mississippi
Vicksburg’s Raymond Elledge set to enter Mississippi Disc Golf Hall of Fame – The Vicksburg Post
Vicksburg’s Raymond Elledge set to enter Mississippi Disc Golf Hall of Fame
Published 4:30 pm Tuesday, September 3, 2024
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Vicksburg resident Raymond Elledge has been elected to the Mississippi Disc Golf Hall of Fame. (Ernest Bowker/The Vicksburg Post)
During two decades of playing disc golf, Raymond Elledge has only won one big tournament.
“I don’t even remember what year it was,” he said.
Nonetheless, Elledge is a legend in the sport in Mississippi. He’s worked tirelessly to maintain courses, been a member of several local and state players associations, and taught people young and old the joys of it. That level of dedication led to Elledge’s recent election to the Mississippi Disc Golf Hall of Fame. He’ll officially be inducted Oct. 12 in Starkville.
“When he first told me last year I was nominated, I told him, ‘Man, you’re making my heart hurt.’ You don’t realize the emotions you can get. Stuff can just tear you up, and it did because I was just so excited,” the 62-year-old Vicksburg resident said. “You go years and years, and you’re out here busting your butt trying to maintain the course and showing everybody what you can.”
Disc golf is played the same as traditional golf, except with plastic discs that resemble frisbees. Players take aim at a steel basket several hundred yards away, with the goal of getting it in there in as few throws as possible.
Elledge first played disc golf in 2002, on a private course built in the backyard of Vicksburg resident Herman Cochran. One of the people playing with Elledge made a hole-in-one, and the excitement over the feat hooked him instantly.
“I seen this little old fella, he was 21 or 22 but he looked like he was 12, and he made an ace. I was hooked. I’ve got to do it,” Elledge said. “I don’t go anywhere on vacation without taking my disc golf bag. I just love the game.”
Elledge added that the simplicity of the sport is something he enjoys. A starter kit of three discs — a driver, mid-range disc and putter, all of which have different densities and flight characteristics — can be purchased for about $25.
The courses are easily found at many parks in Mississippi. There is an 18-hole course at Halls Ferry Park. Players of all ages and shapes can play it as long as they can walk the course. Elledge had quadruple bypass heart surgery eight years ago and playing disc golf helps him stay in shape.
“It’s something anybody can do,” he said. “I’ve trained kids from 5 to 50, and the oldest one I’ve helped train to play this game is 71 years old now. He still comes out and plays. This is a sport that any age can play.“
With his passion for disc golf comes a sense of responsibility. He’s helped clear brush around parts of the Halls Ferry Park course to keep it playable, and done the same while working with associations like the Vicksburg Disc Golf Association and Jackson Union of Disc Golf Enthusiasts.
He’s also eager to teach the game to newcomers.
“I’ve never quit teaching how to play the game,” he said. “They used to have something called the World’s Biggest Disc Golf Weekend and I won it three years in a row. What it is, is whoever takes the most players out to a certain disc golf course gets the T-shirt and a disc.”
His service to the sport led to a nomination for the Mississippi Disc Golf Hall of Fame in 2023, but he didn’t make the final cut. This year he did, and he said it was better than winning any tournament.
“You play a lot of tournaments. You do a whole lot for the sport itself, such as numerous work days working on the course to maintain it. Teaching the kids and when we have tournaments helping move baskets around to new spots,” Elledge said. “Then somebody will nominate you and there’s a lot of votes from the clubs. If you get enough votes from everybody you’re in. You find out how much you’re appreciated by everybody for all that you’ve done.”
About Ernest Bowker
Ernest Bowker is The Vicksburg Post’s sports editor. He has been a member of The Vicksburg Post’s sports staff since 1998, making him one of the longest-tenured reporters in the paper’s 140-year history. The New Jersey native is a graduate of LSU. In his career, he has won more than 50 awards from the Mississippi Press Association and Associated Press for his coverage of local sports in Vicksburg.
More by Ernest
Arizona State forces 3 turnovers in win over Wyoming to start 2024
All offseason, coach Kenny Dillingham preached getting turnovers. Forty seconds into the season’s first game, the defense produced its first one.
The Arizona State Sun Devils host the Mississippi State Bulldogs in a Week 2 non-conference college football game on Saturday, Sept. 7 at Mountain America Stadium in Tempe, Arizona.
Which team will win the game?
Check out these picks and predictions for the game, which is scheduled to begin at 7:30 p.m. MST and can be seen on ESPN (stream with this free trial from FUBO).
Arizona State is coming off a 48-7 win against Wyoming. Mississippi State beat Eastern Kentucky in its season opener, 56-7.
ASU football is a 6.5-point favorite over Mississippi State in the game, according to BetMGM Sportsbook.
The Sun Devils are -250 on the moneyline. The Bulldogs are +200.
The over/under for the game is set at 56.5 points.
This is the first meeting between the two college football programs.
Dimers.com: Arizona State 30, Mississippi State 24
It writes: “According to our analysis, Arizona State is more likely to beat Mississippi State in CFB action at Mountain America Stadium on Saturday.”
Sports Chat Place: Bet ASU football to cover vs Mississippi State
It writes: “I’m going with Arizona State. This should be a fun matchup though, and you could make a case either way. The Sun Devils posted 499 total yards (241 rushing), 7.0 yards per play, 27 first downs and no turnovers in their blowout win Saturday. Defensively they were great as well with 118 yards allowed (78 passing), eight first downs, three turnovers and a 3-of-13 rate on third downs.”
Arizona State football predictions: Game-by-game picks for Sun Devils in 2024 season
Picks and Parlays: Arizona State 35, Mississippi State 21
Cameron Ross writes: “Both teams come in a week two undefeated as each will look to continue to roll. Arizona State will have the edge however as they are on their home field and have a top tier defense. Look for the Sun Devils to keep it rolling as they pick up a win and cover at home against the SEC opponent.”
Clarion Ledger: Arizona State 27, Mississippi State 26
Sam Sklar writes: “This game kicks off at 9:30 p.m. CT against an Arizona State team that should be improved under second-year coach Kenny Dillingham. The Sun Devils offense averaged just 17.7 points per game in part due to injuries at quarterback and offensive line. Redshirt freshman transfer Sam Leavitt is ASU’s new quarterback.”
ASU football schedule: Dates, times, TV channels for Sun Devils’ 2024 season
ESPN: Sun Devils have a 56.5% chance to defeat Bulldogs in Week 2
The site’s matchup predictor gives Mississippi State a 43.5% chance to beat Arizona State at Mountain America Stadium in Tempe on Saturday.
STREAM THE GAME: Watch ASU football vs Mississippi State live with FUBO (free trial)
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Reach Jeremy Cluff at jeremy.cluff@arizonarepublic.com. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter @Jeremy_Cluff.
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Up-to-date information on deer season 2024-25 in Mississippi including CWD, season dates, bag limits, antler restrictions and more.
Watch: Black bear family turns a tree and back porch into a jungle gym
It was playtime for a family of black bears in this North Carolina backyard.
Deer season is almost here and will kick off this month with the early, buck-only archery season followed by the traditional archery season in October then the early primitive weapon season and gun season in November. For thousands in Mississippi, it’s the most exciting time of the year.
But, as has been the case in many years, there have been some changes. Here’s what hunters need to know about chronic wasting disease, bag limits, harvest reporting and season dates for the 2024-25 deer season.
Deer hunting season dates
North Central, Delta and Hills deer management units
- Archery: Sept. 13-15, One legal buck. Special permit, mandatory reporting and CWD sampling required. Private land and authorized state and federal lands.
- Archery: Oct. 1-Nov. 22, Either sex on private land, open public land, and Holly Springs National Forest.
- Youth: Nov. 9-22, Either sex on private lands and authorized state and federal lands.
- Youth: Nov. 23-Jan. 31, Either sex on private lands. On open public lands, youth must follow below legal deer criteria.
- Antlerless primitive weapon: Nov. 11-22, Antlerless deer only on private lands.
- Gun with dogs: Nov. 23-Dec. 1, Either sex on private land and Holly Springs National Forest. Legal bucks only on open public land.
- Primitive weapon: Dec. 2-15, Either sex on private land, open public land, and Holly Springs National Forest. Weapons of choice may be used on private land with the appropriate license.
- Gun without dogs: Dec. 16-23, Either sex on private land and Holly Springs National Forest. Legal bucks only on open public land.
- Gun with dogs: Dec. 24-Jan.22, Either sex on private land and Holly Spring National Forest. Legal bucks only on open public land.
- Archery, primitive weapon: Jan. 23-31, Either sex on private land and Holly Springs National Forest. Legal bucks only on open public land. Weapons of choice may be used on private land with appropriate license.
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Southeast Deer Management Unit
- Archery: Sept. 13-15, One legal buck. Special permit, mandatory reporting and CWD sampling required. Private land and authorized state and federal lands.
- Archery: Oct. 15-Nov. 22, Either sex on private or open public land.
- Youth: 15 years and under, Nov. 9-22, Either sex on private land and authorized state and federal land.
- Youth: 15 years and under, Nov. 23-Feb. 15, Either sex on private land. On open public land, youth must follow legal deer criteria.
- Gun with dogs: Nov. 23-Dec. 1, Either sex on private land. Legal bucks only on open public land.
- Primitive weapon: Dec. 2-15, Either sex on private or open public land. Weapons of choice may be used on private land with appropriate license.
- Gun without dogs: Dec. 16-23, Either sex on private land. Legal bucks only on open public land.
- Gun with dogs: Dec. 24-Jan. 22, Either sex on private land. Legal bucks only on open public land.
- Archery, primitive weapon: Jan. 23-31, Either sex on private land. Legal bucks only on open public land. Weapon of choice may be used on private land with the appropriate license.
- Archery, primitive weapon: Feb. 1-15, Legal bucks only on private and open public land. Weapon of choice may be used on private land with the appropriate license.
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Deer bag limits
- Delta DMU: The bag limit for antlered deer is one per day, three per annual season. The antlerless bag limit is five.
- Hills DMU: The bag limit for antlered deer is one per day, three per annual season. The antlerless bag limit is five.
- North Central DMU: The bag limit for antlered deer is one per day, four per annual season. The limit for antlerless deer is 10 on private lands.
- Southeast DMU: The bag limit for antlered deer is one per day, three per annual season. The bag limit for antlerless deer is one per day, three per annual season.
- U.S. Forest Service National Forests: The bag limit for antlered deer is one per day, three per annual season. The bag limit for antlerless deer is one per day, five per annual season except in the Southeast DMU where the antlerless limit is one per day, three per annual season.
Antler requirements
- Delta DMU: 12-inch inside spread or 15-inch main beam
- Hills DMU: 10-inch inside spread or 13-inch main beam
- North Central DMU: No antler restrictions apply to this zone. Hunters may harvest bucks with any hardened antler.
- Southeast DMU: 10-inch inside spread or 13-inch main beam
- Youth hunters: For youth hunters 15 years of age and younger, hunting on private land and authorized state and federal lands, all of the buck bag limit may be any antlered deer.
- Buck of choice: In the Delta, Hills and Southeast DMUs, hunters may harvest one buck that does not meet antler requirements on private land and Holly Springs National Forest.
- Public lands: Antler requirements vary among public lands. Hunters should check regulations for the specific public land they plan to hunt before hunting.
Blaze orange
Hunters have traditionally been required to wear 500 square inches of unbroken blaze orange while deer hunting as a safety measure, but this year they have an alternative. A bill passed in the 2024 Legislative session allows hunters to choose between blaze orange or pink.
CWD testing
Testing deer for CWD, a disease that is considered always fatal for deer, is not mandatory other than during the early archery season, but the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks urges hunters to provide tissue samples of harvested deer for testing.
According to the department, knowing where the disease exists and how prevalent it is helps in managing and slowing the spread of the disease.
Although there has been no known case of it spreading to humans, the CDC warns against consuming infected deer. So hunters should know if their deer is infected as well.
Since the disease was first detected in Mississippi in 2018, there have been 318 cases found in the state as of September 2024.
For convenience, MDWFP has provided freezers at locations across the state where hunters can leave deer heads with six inches of neck attached for testing. The agency has also partnered with a number of taxidermy businesses that will have deer tested at the customer’s request.
CWD management zones
Counties in CWD management zones have changed with some added and a zone added this year. Within these zones, special regulations are in place to slow the spread of the disease such as a supplemental feeding ban and carcass transportation restrictions.
North CWD Management Zone
The North CWD Management Zone includes all portions of the following counties:
- Alcorn County
- Benton County
- Desoto County
- Lafayette County
- Marshall County
- Panola County
- Prentiss County
- Tate County
- Tippah County
- Tishomingo County
- Union County
Portions of Coahoma, Quitman, and Tunica counties are also included and are defined as:
- Areas south of MS 4
- Areas east of Old Highway 61 to the intersection of US 49
- Areas east of US 49 to the intersection of US 278
- Areas north of US 278
- Areas west of MS 3
Issaquena CWD Management Zone
- Claiborne County
- Sharkey County, east of the Mississippi River and south of MS 14
- Warren County
Harrison CWD Management Zone
Portions of Hancock and Harrison counties are included and defined as:
- All portions of Harrison County west of US 49
- All portions of Hancock County east of MS 53, MS 603 and MS 43
- All portions of Hancock County east of Nicholson Avenue
What is banned in a CWD management zone?
- Salt licks
- Mineral licks
- Supplemental feeding
- Transportation of deer carcasses outside the zone
What parts of a deer can be taken out of a CWD zone?
- Cut/wrapped meat
- Deboned meat
- Hides with no head attached
- Bone-in leg quarters
- Finished taxidermy
- Antlers with no tissue attached
- Cleaned skulls or skull plates with no brain tissue
- Hunters may transport deer heads to permitted taxidermists participating in the CWD collection program. A CWD sample number must be obtained from a participating taxidermist prior to transporting a deer head outside of the CWD management zone.
Do you have a story idea? Contact Brian Broom at 601-961-7225 or bbroom@gannett.com.
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