In this Feb. 20, 2015 photo, Alaska Cannabis Club CEO Charlo Greene prepares to roll a joint at the medical marijuana dispensary in Anchorage, Alaska.

Opening of third Delaware medical marijuana dispensary pushed back 6 months

MILFORD, Del. — The opening of Delaware’s third medical marijuana dispensary has been delayed until next spring.

The News Journal of Wilmington reports New York-based Columbia Care says central Delaware’s first dispensary will not open for at least six months later than initially planned, the latest setback for a statewide medical marijuana program roll out marked by delays.

Columbia Care declined to comment to the newspaper, but Delaware Department of Health and Social Services spokeswoman Emily Knearl says zoning, construction and permitting holdups caused the delay.

Columbia Care won a state contract to serve Kent County in September 2016. More than 500 people in the county are certified to purchase medical marijuana, constituting around 14.5 percent of medical marijuana patients statewide.

First State Compassion Center operates dispensaries in Lewes and near Wilmington.

Information from: The News Journal of Wilmington, Del.