Update: An attorney for Mission told Brookline.News that the dispensary has not returned its license, and is weighing its options for both the license and its space on Commonwealth Avenue. The town is planning to hold a hearing on the matter on Nov. 12.
One of Brookline’s four marijuana dispensaries has closed, just three years after it opened.
Mission Brookline Cannabis Dispensary, which opened in 2021 at 1024 Commonwealth Avenue, shut its doors in August.
“They have ceased sales activity, and complied with the requirements of the state Cannabis Control Commission to transfer their supply and close the business,” said Town Administrator Charles Carey at a Select Board meeting on Tuesday.
Mission Dispensaries, which still operates two other Massachusetts locations in Worcester and Georgetown, did not respond to multiple requests for comment. Employees who answered phones at the two other locations referred questions to a corporate email address, which went unanswered.
Because Mission has returned its license to operate in Brookline, the town will start accepting applications for a new licensee in mid-October, according to Carey.
“There’s a lot of interest,” he said. “We’ve already been getting emails asking about the license.”
The town is planning to only accept applications from entities or individuals which have been given “economic empowerment” or “social equity” status by the Cannabis Control Commission, which aim to empower business owners from populations most impacted by the war on drugs.
Carey said preference will also be given to applicants who have lived in Brookline for at least five years.
The cannabis industry has contracted in recent years amid falling prices and a challenging regulatory landscape, and the state’s commission to regulate the industry
Vivi Smilgius contributed to this report.