SHERWOOD, Ohio —
Recreational marijuana sales started Tuesday, something a lot of Ohio residents have been anxiously awaiting.
"It's a historical day in Ohio in my opinion," Van Wert resident Dustin Taylor said. "I'm 51 years old and have been waiting for this for a long time, and it's finally here."
Taylor is just one of many people who took the time to stop by a dispensary and make a purchase, and in rural areas near the Indiana border, there are only a few options for where to go.
Taylor's first stop of the day: Theory Wellness in Sherwood.
"We're dispensary hopping," Taylor said. "We're going over to another one right now, to Delphos, Ohio to one. We're excited."
Theory Wellness has been in Sherwood for over a year, according to the company's CEO Brandon Pollock. He said before the location opened, people in the area were driving to Toledo to get medical marijuana.
Now, recreational sales are bringing new customers in.
"Today has been our busiest day in history already, even though we're only two hours into the day or so," Pollock said. "We've had a few dozen customers already come through. We had a few folks lining up in the beginning at the door."
Pollock said they were predicting more people visiting who did not originally want to get their medical cards.
Taylor drove over 40 minutes to make a purchase, but Pollock said they already had started to see customers come over from across the state lines.
"I expect a lot of people are going to come from Indiana," Pollock said. "A lot of folks have been driving to Michigan to acquire legal cannabis from Indiana so this is a lot quicker option and gas is not that cheap anymore."
Traveling across state lines with marijuana even if it is purchased legally is a federal crime.
Pollock said although marijuana can have a lot of negative stigmas, he thinks it's better to have it come from somewhere where it is tested.
"From my view, cannabis is already in the community so it's better to have it from a regulated source," Pollock said.
Pollock said the dispensary has received a lot of community support so far.
"We've had a couple local business owners stop by, wish us luck, thanking for us investing in the community," Pollock said. "I think we'll see more and more traffic come into the area that can support general economic positivity."
Pollock said 14 new people were hired to staff up for the start of recreational sales. He said he hopes the business the dispensary is getting will help the other restaurants and businesses in the area.
"It's been really positive," Pollock said.