WARWICK – Rhode Island Compassion Center has filed a lawsuit against the R.I. Cannabis Control Commission in R.I. Superior Court over a recent consent agreement that the commission reached with Green Wave Compassion Center, which RICC alleges is "arbitrary and capricious" and runs afoul of state law and agency regulations.
In 2021, Green Wave was granted a provisional dispensary license to open a facility in Foster following a lottery conducted by the R.I. Department of Business Regulation, which RICC was also in the running for.
According to the court filing, Green Wave "failed to substantially complete licensure requirements” and "made material changes with respect to ownership, management and funding,” in reference to a request granted under the consent agreement to restructure the entity from a nonprofit corporation to a for-profit corporation and allow the substitution of GW Holdings LLC as a 49% shareholder and owner of Green Wave by offering $1.2 million in funding.
After being granted several extensions by state regulators, the suit alleges a "back-room secretly negotiated consent agreement.”
The suit comes after the Aug. 7 vote by the Cannabis Control Commission rejecting a request by Rhode Island Compassion Center to intervene in the acquisition of the Zone 3 dispensary license for the western part of the state.
Green Wave has been working on its proposed facility at 187 Danielson Pike in Foster.
The commission imposed a $24,500 fine on Green Wave, but the consent agreement included retroactive changes that were not allowed, such as an additional 120 days to resolve any lingering property issues.
Leslie Parker, an attorney for Adler Pollock & Sheehan, which is representing RICC, declined to comment beyond the complaint, which states that Green Wave was afforded special treatment out of line with the commission's regulations to "essentially create an entirely new application from that submitted in 2020."
In a statement, RICC Principal David DiSanto said he disagrees with the commission's decision denying RICC's motion for reconsideration “and the deal that it struck with Green Wave.”
“We're looking forward to making our case in Superior Court and remain committed to bringing a compassion center to Zone 3 as soon as possible,” DiSanto said.
Green Wave attorney Joseph Mancini said the lawsuit is the latest attempt by RICC to stall the opening of his client’s business, which he pointed out would be located in a region that has no adult-use cannabis providers.
“They want this license, but they don't have a ticket to the game,” he said of RICC. “They didn't win a lottery.”
Green Wave is finalizing the last of the regulatory requirements “and looks forward to opening soon,” Mancini said.
Cannabis Control Commission spokesperson Charon Rose on Friday said the commission does not comment on pending litigation but “has made steady headway working to expand the adult-use market in Rhode Island and will continue to monitor litigation and any impact it may have on its efforts.”
Christopher Allen is a PBN staff writer. You may contact him at Allen@PBN.com.
