DELAWARE - A total of 15 open retail marijuana licenses are available in Delaware, with 529 applicants advancing to the lottery stage, according to the Office of the Marijuana Commissioner. The licensing lottery will take place on Thursday, Dec. 19, at 1 p.m., and will be broadcast live on Facebook Live through the OMC’s official page.
The available licenses are distributed across the state’s three counties:
- Sussex County: Five licenses available, with 168 applications eligible
- Kent County: Three licenses available, with 151 applications eligible
- New Castle County: Seven licenses available, with 210 applications eligible
Lottery Details
Applicants who pass the minimum qualifications review and pay the required application fee receive a unique lottery number. Separate drawings will be held for each county, with selected lottery numbers revealed live during the broadcast.
The OMC will notify selected applicants in the days following the lottery. Once all selected applicants are officially informed, their identities will be made public through the media and the OMC’s website. Selected applicants will then begin the supplemental application process to secure a conditional license.
These are the results of Delaware's open retail license lottery Thursday afternoon.
Results of Delaware's open retail lottery for marijuana licenses.
Five more people will not be able to sell recreational marijuana in Sussex County. The names of those selected will be released in the following week.
Owner and Founder of White Cap Cannabis, Patrick Galloway, was selected in October for a micro cultivation license back in October. He's been using his experience with the plant to make a difference since then.
"I found cannabis to be extremely helpful with a lot of the different aspects of not only the ADHA that I deal with, but the side effects of all the years of medication," Galloway shared.
People all over the county have shared mixed opinions on the legalization of marijuana and bringing it to Delaware. Galloway is very familiar with the concerns, but says a lot of it is due to misinformation.
"Trying to educate those people, reeducate them on what this plant is and how it can help people. It's going to be a big, big battle as well."
Keeping the concerns in mind, Galloway has reached out to the neighbors in the area he plans to build his business to hear their concerns so he can work through the concerns with them or adjust plans if necessary.
While many may not understand the desire to own this kind of business, Galloway says to him it's all about making a change.
"I'd like to take it a step further and potentially employ recovered addicts, recovered felons and people that have been affected by the homeless crisis in the state," said Galloway.
At the moment, Galloway is in the middle of his equity raise process. He's selling equity to raise money to start construction by the end of January.
If all goes to plan, he hopes to be up and running by the end of 2025 or beginning of 2026.
