DETROIT (FOX 2) – It has been a wild ride for many cannabis shops across Metro Detroit, like Greenhouse of Walled Lake.
What they’re saying:
That is according to their manager, Mike Nevells, who also says there have been plenty of surprises since Michigan made recreational marijuana legal.
“It’s been kind of off to the races since then,” he said. “We’ll see how things evolve moving forward.”
One such evolution is many groups getting a slice of millions of dollars in state marijuana tax dollars that have been collected.
This time, $100 million of it will be divided up among 300 communities across the state.
“Obviously, it’s great that the cannabis industry is able to give back to the community,” Nevells said.
By the numbers:
$100 million for:
108 cities36 villages80 townships74 counties4 tribes
In Ferndale, Laura Mikulski serves as Mayor Pro Tem on the City Council. She says many towns have been trying to be innovative in raising money to cover basic services in tighter economic times.
She hails the nearly $350,000 dollars coming into Ferndale and that’s about $100K more than they got last year.
“I know that for our local community we’re really looking to find ways to enhance public safety, services, infrastructure, community programs, things like that,” said Mikulski. “An extra $100,000 into our budget, that’s easily a fully fringed police officer right there.”
Why you should care:
The state funds for schools and transportation will each get more than $115 million from the marijuana tax money as well.
While cannabis industry insiders praise the relatively lower pot tax they see here versus in other states, there are concerns about potential increases with more government programs that state leaders want to add on.
“I only worry that if we went up that high that it might actually hurt the businesses as a whole and I want to see this obviously continue to grow and thrive like it has been,” said Nevells.
The Source: FOX 2 talked with manager Mike Nevells and Ferndale Mayor Pro Tem Laura Mikulski.
It has been a wild ride for many cannabis shops across Metro Detroit, like Greenhouse of Walled Lake. That is according to their manager, Matt Nevells, who also says there has been plenty of surprises since Michigan made recreational marijuana legal. Read More
