Rapid City Council rejects permit application for medical cannabis dispensary

RAPID CITY, S.D. (KOTA) - A Rapid City medical marijuana company has been looking to expand to more locations, but Monday night, they learned they won’t be fully expanding to an area that they wanted to.

Puffy’s Dispensary applied for a Conditional Use Permit to operate out of 910 Main Street.

The city’s Planning Commission voted to grant that permit, but an appeal was made to the full council.

Puffy’s owner Kittrick Jeffries told the council that the current Rapid City location, also on Main Street, has done a good job at being a good neighbor.

”Some of our patients actually shop at some of these other businesses downtown. In the same way that they shop at The Good Stuffed, or the essential oils hop at our current operating business on 2120 W Main St. Downton there are dozens of malt beverage licenses, liquor licenses, video lottery licenses, all in that ‘family friendly’ district.”

Puffy’s already acquired a license at the nearby 902 Main Street, but wanted to move due to not having water sprinklers already installed.

Council member Jason Salamun said that while he respects Puffy’s as a business, he can’t support a dispensary in that particular location.

”This is me not playing favorites and supporting how I vote on all of these, that we have zones that we allow to go in, I approved those licenses for those green zones, and this is not in a green zone. So, I have to say no. It’s the cleanest way to do this, and that’s how I’m going to vote.”

Salamun joined with six other members in rejecting the permit application.

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