The long-awaited launch of Delaware’s recreational marijuana market is set for April 2025.
And the Office of the Marijuana Commissioner and its chief — Robert Coupe, a former Delaware State Police superintendent and Department of Safety and Homeland Security secretary — have announced some numbers.
From Aug. 19 to Sept. 30, the agency received 1,269 paid applications for the 125 cultivation, manufacturer, retail, testing and microcultivation licenses ahead of the first phase of the lottery process, beginning Thursday.
The office had anticipated 400-500 applications during that time frame, which opened two weeks before the Sept. 1 date mandated by law, Mr. Coupe told the Daily State News.
Instead, the division is handling triple the expected number of applicants, which include individuals in Delaware and surrounding states.
“That far exceeded our expectations. … What was surprising was how many of these came in over the last two days (of the window), how many were generated and paid at the very end,” Mr. Coupe said.