Guess What’s Coming to this New Paltz, NY Location?

After sitting empty for a few years a former convenience store will soon be home to something new.

The Village of New Paltz in Ulster County has officially approved plans that could bring a highly anticipated business into the Village real soon. The site plans for a potential cannabis dispensary at the former Stewart's Shop location were approved at a recent Planning Board meeting according to the town's website.

Former New Paltz, NY Stewart's to Become Dispensary

Back in 2019 the Stewart's Shop located at 98 North Chestnut Street (Route 32) announced that they would be moving up the road soon as construction of their new location was completed. The new location at 76 N Chestnut St, in New Paltz, has been open for a while now but the former location has been sitting vacant for some time as owners just to figure out what to do with the building.

There have been many rumors and suggestions over the years as to what should take Stewart's place but nothing seemed to work, until now. According to the Village planning board, they have approved an application to potentially turn the 2286 sq. ft. building into a cannabis dispensary. The application was submitted to the Village back in January by the company New Paltz Bus LLC and was approved at the Village's October 3rd meeting.

The approval clears the path for New Paltz to add an adult-use cannabis dispensary in the college town. This won't be the first legal cannabis opportunity in New Paltz as they recently held the state's first successful "Grower Showcase", which according to Village Mayor Tim Rodgers brought in decent revenue for both the town and the village. Rodgers told the Daily Freeman that they each brought in around $1,200 for the first few weeks of the weekly grower's showcase.

SEE ALSO: Cannabis Grower Showcases Coming to Kingston, New York

Rodgers also said that the new tenants at the former convenience store will be licensed through the New York State Social Equity Cannabis program.

Anyone who qualifies to get a CAURD (Conditional Adult Use Retail Dispensary) will be able to open in New Paltz according to Rodgers,

"There are different locations where they can open and now New Paltz will be added to that list of where they can start a business."

What About the Traffic?

Many residents were against the possibility of a dispensary because of the traffic issues it may cause in the already traffic-heavy area but Rodgers said the location has ample parking (24 spots) and a separate entrance and exit onto a state road, so traffic shouldn't be an issue.

When Will it Open?

It's unclear when the new dispensary will open but when the Village releases more information we will update this article.