Dispensary sales of recreational marijuana began Tuesday; possession and usage still prohibited on Ohio State’s campus

Ohio voters approved Issue 2 last November, thereby legalizing the possession, growth and use of marijuana statewide. Additionally, the law’s passing permitted the sale of marijuana by licensed dispensaries and created the Ohio Division of Cannabis Control, or DCC.

The DCC issued the first dual-use dispensary certificates of operation Tuesday, allowing select dispensaries to start selling non-medical marijuana to consumers.

According to the DCC’s website , non-medical consumers of marijuana currently cannot purchase more than 10 whole day units of cannabis combined across all forms. For example, non-medical consumers can purchase either one ounce of plant material for vaporization — also known as flower — ten units of oil for vaporization — each of which contains 590 mg of THC, the primary psychoactive component in marijuana — or 10 packages of edibles totaling no more than 1100 mg of THC.

Despite the legalization of recreational marijuana, students, faculty and staff cannot possess, grow, smoke or use weed on Ohio State’s campus, according to a Dec. 6, 2023 Ohio State News Alert .

“Federal law supersedes Ohio law,” the news alert states. “Because the university receives federal funding, the university is subject to federal law in this area, including the Drug Free Schools and Communities Act. This act specifically prohibits possession, use or distribution of marijuana in relation to any university activity, including research.”

Possession and use of marijuana is prohibited on all university-owned, -operated or -leased property, which includes “residence halls and other university housing facilities, offices, university-managed properties and all Wexner Medical Center facilities,” the news alert states.

Despite campus rules, Ali Bazzi, a managing partner at Nar Reserve — a medicinal and recreational marijuana dispensary located at 350 E. Long St. — said because there are only 10 dispensaries in Franklin County authorized to sell recreational marijuana, the facility is expecting a large number of customers in the coming months.

“We’re serving almost two million people in the metro Columbus area with a handful of dispensaries, so the waits are going to be long,” Bazzi said.

For Nar Reserve, which sold medicinal marijuana prior to Issue 2 being passed, Bazzi said 8-10 a.m. are priority hours for medicinal customers so they do not lose access to their medication. After 10 a.m., the dispensary opens its sales floor to recreational customers.

When entering the dispensary, customers will be asked to scan their ID to ensure they are 21 years of age or older. Subsequently, customers will be able to enter the sales floor where they can order marijuana products off a menu with the help of a “budtender” — a play on bartender, referring to an associate who sells marijuana.

Bazzi said he recommends that customers place a preorder or view Nar Reserve’s menu before visiting to avoid long lines.

“We do offer a little over 1,000 [stock keeping units], so [customers] can be in here for a minute if they don’t have an idea of what they want,” Bazzi said. “So, we recommend them viewing our menu and having an idea of what they want because they might be coming at a time where there’s 30, 40, 50 people in the lobby.”

After a customer places their order, Bazzi said it will be processed in the “Fulfillment Section,” a room connected to the sales floor by a window. There, the order will be put together and passed back to the budtender to give to the customer.

For payment, cash is the best option, as dispensaries are not able to accept credit card transactions so long as marijuana remains illegal under federal law. Customers can also pay with debit card, or through some third-party payment transfers, Bazzi said.

In order to purchase, Bazzi said customers must provide a valid driver’s license or passport. For recreational marijuana, customers must be 21 or over, but for medicinal marijuana, customers can purchase products if they are under 21 with a valid medical marijuana card.