As pot enthusiasts celebrate 4/20, NY continues its rollout of legal dispensaries. See where

On the eve of April 20, the day cannabis culture is celebrated annually, 31-year-old Jay Brown was baking peanut butter and jelly cookies infused with THC, the marijuana ingredient that gives people a high.

For those who don't typically consume pot, if they were going to indulge "it's probably going to be on 4/20," Brown said.

"I feel like every year on 4/20, more people can recognize it," he said. "I want more people to get used to it being ok. They might realize it's helpful for them."

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And in New York, marijuana is about to get more publicly accessible year-round.

In 2021, New York became the 15th state to legalize recreational marijuana use. The rollout of dispensaries took time.

New York State has said that the focus of the Marijuana Regulation & Taxation Act (MRTA), which legalized marijuana, is social and economic equity.

The state wants to prioritize cannabis entrepreneurs previously affected by its prohibition under the Conditional Adult Use Retail Dispensary (CAURD) program.

Multi-state companies who have spent millions to position themselves in the legal market are now suing the state, calling the program unconstitutional and allowing the illicit market to thrive.

As judges and lawyers work through the legal fight, legal licenses to open dispensaries in regions like the Finger Lakers have been halted.

Last month, Gov. Kathy Hochul's office announced new dispensaries were opening in Queens, in Ithaca and in Schenectady, which is a first for the Capital Region.

There are eight legal adult-use recreational dispensaries listed in a database shared online by the state's Office of Cannabis Management:

Changes to state law also made it so that home cultivation will be permitted 18 months before the first adult-use retail sale. That means people will be allowed to grow their own weed starting in July 2024.

New Yorkers who are 21 years and older will be allowed to have six cannabis plants in their home for personal use — three mature plants and three immature plants. A household could have a maximum of twelve plants.

Cultivating marijuana culture in Rochester

Brown, who has been diagnosed with bipolar disorder, said he became unapologetic about his marijuana use after he discovered the benefits cannabis had on his temperament. His mission now is to educate Rochester's cannabis community to do the same legally.

"I smoke so I can be calm enough to get through the day, and that's decent enough for me," he said.

Brown said he has been smoking weed since he was a teenager after initially avoiding it due to the plant's stigma. He credits cannabis for helping him "open up," a process he refers to as self-medication.

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After studying Biology at Alfred University and a stint in the U.S Army, Brown moved to Oregon in 2014, the same year the state legalized cannabis. It's there that Brown learned how to grow marijuana.

Foreseeing that his home state of New York would eventually follow Oregon, Brown dreamed of educating people about the benefits of growing the plants.

He's been teaching people the process at local seminars.

"It's not a drug; it's a plant that grows," Brown said. "I didn't realize that was my goal, but somebody has to tell people it's OK.

Contact Robert Bell at: rlbell@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter: @byrobbell & Instagram: @byrobbell.

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This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Where are legal marijuana dispensaries in New York state? The list