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Retail sales of recreational marijuana began in Colorado Springs Tuesday morning with less a bang — or bong — than a whisper, with a number of shops still awaiting delivery of the product at the heart of a municipal tangle whose roots date back more than a decade.
For the 27 locations approved by the city to engage in such business, sales could legally begin, to customers 21 and up, as soon as doors opened on Tax Day 2025. The law also stipulated that deliveries by recreational growers/distributors could not begin until that morning.
No long lines of uber-zealous customers snaked out of dispensary doors early Tuesday, though customers filtered into shops around town throughout the day. Many of them had to wait to buy, however, as dispensaries labeled and prepared their recreational flower, concentrates, edibles and other products for sale since receiving shipments only earlier in the day.
Still, dispensary representatives said interest is high.
An hour after opening at 8 a.m. (with expanded hours, to accommodate the long-awaited debut), The 64 Store on West Colorado Avenue was among a number of approved recreational marijuana shops still waiting to receive the inventory that would allow them to fulfill that new sign on the door.
“We’ve been getting a ton of calls, and we’ve already talked to so many people, even with our earlier hours,” said General Manager Yazmine Cash shortly after 9 a.m. “We said, we can sell it, we just can’t sell it yet because we don’t have it.”
As customers filtered in and out of several Epic Remedy locations in Colorado Springs, limited amounts were also available through the mid-morning and early afternoon there.
An Epic Remedy employee who asked to remain anonymous said their shop received roughly 50 phone calls about recreational marijuana since opening at 9 a.m.
Because of the limited number of approved recreational marijuana grows in Colorado Springs — only three, according to a city database of active retail marijuana licenses as of April 9 — Cash said many local shops must rely on suppliers from out of town, including in the Denver area.
“We’re pretty much getting all of our rec inventory outsourced from different cities, so it’s taking time,” Cash said. “Right now, everybody’s having to wait.”
But recreational marijuana suppliers were busily making deliveries to fully stock shelves all across town.
The first delivery of recreational flower to The 64 Store arrived shortly after 10 a.m. Another, auspiciously, came at 4:20 p.m., a code for marijuana consumption born in the early 1970s, Cash said late Tuesday afternoon.
She said that her shop had, up to that point, served “about 20” recreational customers.
Before the expansion to recreational marijuana, on an average day Cash said the shop saw from 30 to 40 medical marijuana customers.
“We’ve definitely seen an increase in foot traffic today,” she said.
Epic Remedy customers, while excited about what some called a “great day,” had to leave empty-handed at two locations early in the afternoon. Epic Remedy CEO Renze Waddington hopes that by Wednesday, shelves will be fully stocked.
Sunday could be a big sales day for local retail shops, too. Marijuana users typically partake in the ultimate annual marijuana holiday every April 20, aka marijuana’s slang term, 4/20.
“I feel good about it. There’s just a lot to do and we’re trying a big push to get open,” he said. “The industry has been working with different city councils over the years since (Amendment) 64 passed over a decade ago. … There was no real victory after we won the election, because we knew we were headed to a lawsuit.”
Colorado voters in November 2012 approved retail sales statewide, which went into effect in 2014. Colorado Springs chose to outlaw retail sales locally, though, and voters had previously defeated other ballot questions seeking to legalize recreational sales.
That changed last November, when voters approved retail sales by 54.7% to 45.3% with 238,982 votes in the general election, according to data from the Colorado Secretary of State’s Office. Voters concurrently defeated an opposing question that sought to outlaw recreational sales in Colorado Springs by city charter, 50.6% against and 49.4% in favor, with 240,689 total votes.
Months later, the City Council attempted to place another question on the April 1 municipal ballot that would have asked residents to repeal the new voter-approved recreational marijuana ordinance.
Waddington and El Paso County Progressive Veterans Executive Director Adam Gillard filed a lawsuit against the city in El Paso County District Court in late January to prevent the repeal question from going onto the municipal ballot. They and other marijuana proponents got another win in February, when an El Paso County District Court judge ruled in Waddington’s and Gillard’s favor.
“In the past month or two, it’s been a big push to get ready. … There’s a lot to do in a short period of time,” Waddington said.
Mayor Yemi Mobolade, former Mayor John Suthers, many councilmembers and community groups including One Chance to Grow Up, which advocates for protecting children against the dangers of marijuana, have opposed legalizing recreational sales in Colorado Springs.
Opponents have said it could change the community’s culture; could potentially affect future federal decisions on the fate of the location of Space Command, currently headquartered in the city; worried that underage users would have an easier time getting their hands on marijuana if sales were expanded; and warned against the health effects of marijuana containing high-potency THC, the main psychoactive ingredient in the drug.
A One Chance to Grow Up representative reiterated in a written statement on Tuesday that high-potency product can cause nausea, vomiting, psychosis, long-term mental health challenges and can lead to addiction.
“As legalization expands, public education on the impact today’s marijuana can have on the developing brain is imperative. We must also be diligent about enforcing laws to keep these products out of the hands of youth while addressing the lack of adequate safeguards around today’s kid-friendly ultra potent THC products,” wrote Alton Dillard, a One Chance to Grow Up spokesman.
Eddie Rodriquez, a sales manager with marijuana supplier WYLD, said industry professionals don’t want the drug in the hands of underage users, either.
“I think this industry’s done a really good job of setting up rules and regulations to prevent it from getting in kids’ hands,” he said.
A study by Florida Atlantic University, which looked at data from more than 88,000 children, found that, nationally, marijuana use among teens and young people fell from 23.1% in 2011 to 15.8% in 2021. Furthermore, first-time use before age 13 fell from 8.1% to 4.9%, the study found.
However, use among older students was higher, especially among 12th-graders. Study authors said this is likely due to having greater access, a “more developed peer network” and increased independence. Authors added it highlights the need for “targeted interventions” aimed at older students who are “at a greater risk of regular marijuana use.”
The data points are not lost on Rodriquez.
“We all are concerned about teen use,” he said, adding that the industry is supportive of efforts to keep marijuana out of teens’ hands. “If adults want to consume marijuana, I think they have a legal right to consume and enjoy it. Honestly, I think it’s a much better alternative than alcohol.”
On Tuesday morning, customer Tynan Swayde bought marijuana flower at Green Pharm 2 at 4335 N. Academy Blvd., Suite 100, the dispensary’s first-ever recreational customer.
Swayde uses marijuana to control migraines and has carried a medical card to buy the drug locally. Though his medical card recently expired, he was still able to buy the product he needed on Tuesday, thanks to the retail marijuana ordinance, he said.
“This has been in the making for a long time,” Swayde said of legal recreational marijuana sales, pointing out that Colorado Springs customers no longer have to drive to nearby municipalities including Pueblo, Manitou Springs, Palmer Lake and Denver to purchase recreational product.
“You either like (that recreational marijuana sales are legal) or you don’t,” he said. “There’s really not a middle ground that I’ve heard. But I think it will be a boost for our economy … and it’s going to take (Colorado Springs) where we need to be.”
Proponents of the ballot question to legalize retail marijuana sales estimated retail sales could generate $10 million-$15 million in revenues dedicated for public safety and other programs, such as a program to help military veterans diagnosed with post-traumatic stress syndrome.
Mobolade said in a written statement Tuesday the city’s most recent estimates show retail marijuana sales, which include a special 5% city sales tax, are estimated to bring in $1.25 million in revenues annually. Data from the state Department of Revenue shows that statewide, marijuana revenues have declined year over year since 2021. Marijuana sales across Colorado totaled $2.2 billion in 2021, compared with just under $1.4 billion in 2024.
Mobolade said in a written statement Tuesday he remains skeptical of the benefits retail marijuana sales could have on Colorado Springs.
“I am disappointed this passed, but I respect the decision of our voters,” he said. “… I am still concerned about its potential to harm our young people and influence future military basing decisions in a negative way.”
The mayor said he will ensure all local recreational marijuana sales revenues are directed toward public safety initiatives, which he acknowledged can benefit from additional funding. City leaders soon will outline their specific priorities for that funding.
“However, I do not believe the revenue potential justifies the broader risks, especially the possible negative impacts on our youth and our local economy. In the end, not all revenue is worth the cost,” Mobolade said.
Benefit or no, marijuana proponents said Tuesday that Coloradans have a right, through the state constitution, to partake in legal marijuana use.
“The cat’s not going back in the bag,” said Billy Martin, who grows marijuana product at Colorado Springs-based Altitude Organic Medicine, which he co-founded in 2010 with General Manager Aaron Bluse. The shop has three locations in Colorado Springs.
“So why are we taking Colorado Springs taxpayers’ money and giving it to other communities (who sell recreational weed)? Why not support local small businesses instead?” Martin said.
”}]] Retail sales of recreational marijuana began in Colorado Springs Tuesday morning with less a bang — or bong — than a whisper, with a number of shops still awaiting delivery of the product at the heart of a municipal tangle whose roots date back more than a decade. Read More
