Does Marijuana Delivery Make Sense for Glendale?

One of the most interesting municipal enclaves in the Denver area may be sitting out the marijuana delivery game.

A hot target for many in Colorado's marijuana industry now that the business is legal at the state level, the topic of delivery keeps coming up at local government gatherings. Aurora has already opted in to the practice, and Denver City Council is set to begin considering rules for delivery on March 2.

Glendale, a town of around 5,000 people that's surrounded by south/central Denver, will likely bide its time, according to Deputy City Manager Chuck Line.

"We're a small city. Some things we want to be the frontrunners on, because there's a benefit to the businesses and citizens," Line says. "I haven't really heard a citizen say they'd really love to have delivered, but then again, most of them are literally within a couple blocks of a dispensary."

According to the United States Census Bureau, Glendale's total area is less than one square mile, and as Line notes, any of its able-bodied residents can walk to one of the town's seven dispensaries in a short time. While the topic of delivery has come up casually among city councilmembers and staffers, the town's marijuana industry hasn't brought up the subject, Line says.

If Denver eventually opts in to delivery, Glendale could theoretically allow dispensaries from Denver (and other nearby towns allowing delivery) to deliver to Glendale residences, but that would also require government approval. While Glendale does allow restaurants from outside of town to deliver to residents, Line notes that allowing outside marijuana delivery might not benefit local dispensaries. However, If a Glendale dispensary wanted to seek a delivery permit in a nearby town, "we wouldn't have any preclusion from that," he explains.

Although Glendale may not get in the delivery game any time soon, the town's pot shops can now apply for a local marijuana hospitality license. Last March, Glendale adopted an ordinance allowing dispensaries to have tasting rooms in their establishments — days before the state began enacting public-health orders related to the COVID-19 pandemic.

While the pandemic delayed any plans to open marijuana tasting rooms, at least two local dispensaries — the Smokin Gun and the Green Solution — have expressed desire in doing so when the pandemic ends. "We were one of the first to opt in there," Line notes. That does and will especially benefit our businesses."

Several Colorado municipalities have rejected marijuana delivery since the state began slowly legalizing the practice in 2020. The Colorado Springs City Council opted out of marijuana delivery last year, while the Silverthorne Town Council did so in January.