There was a lucky vibe for Friday the 13th, at the grand opening for cannabis consumption lounge The Woods, co-owned by actor and cannabis entrepreneur Woody Harrelson. Located in West Hollywood, California, the newly remodeled storefront is one of the first of a slew of consumption facilities slated to open in the city over the next two years.
“It’s the most auspicious day, which is why we did it today,” Harrelson told High Times. He explained the years-long process, which has finally led to the sunlit space on Santa Monica Boulevard.
“It was years even before that because my friend and partner Samba (dispensary owner Devon “Samba” Wheeler)—he has now three dispensaries, ERBA Markets—anyway, he was a good friend of mine even before he went off into that stuff, and he was talking to me, ‘You know, you should do it.’
“And I was like ‘I don’t know, what if the feds decide to crack down? What do you do?’ It just depends on how aggro the administration is. So, it just felt a little bit too dicey. Then, he convinced me and we started looking at places—years ago, we started looking. A place on Sunset, here and there, Malibu, everywhere. I came and saw this place with him and I’m like this is the most beautiful place; I went and I hung out in the back area—that’s not actually open yet—it has a koi pond, tropical plants.”
The new lounge’s showroom is white with exposed brick and beams, lots of wood (of course), and large enough to accommodate a throng of event attendees. The doors were officially opened with a ribbon-cutting ceremony and the presentation of a Certificate of Welcome from the City of West Hollywood by Mayor Lauren Meister. Several city officials also were there, along with media, and cannabis industry insiders, some of them in Los Angeles to attend this weekend’s Emerald Cup event. Harrelson is slated to judge at the event.
A longtime advocate, Harrelson said he would continue to support legalization of cannabis on a federal level and legal reforms, especially for those currently imprisoned on cannabis charges.
“If advocacy means shooting my mouth off, then I’m going to continue to do that,” Harrelson said.
“It’s absurd,” he continued. “There are these things called consensual crimes, or victimless crimes, and those are the crimes that don’t hurt anybody other than the person perpetrating the crime, right? Like gambling, drugs, prostitution. To me, if you’re not hurting someone else or their property, you should be able to do whatever the hell you want. I’m not condoning gambling or drugs or anything—I’m just saying, in a real, free society that pretty much should be the definition. The government tries to say, ‘We’re going to put you in jail,’ which they have done for so many years, ‘because you like marijuana.’ That’s pretty absurd and I think it’s pretty much of an overreach.”
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