South Jersey's 2d medical marijuana site to open in fall

South Jersey is expected to have a second medical marijuana dispensary open this fall, according to the New Jersey Health Department. It announced Monday that it had issued a growing permit to Compassionate Sciences Inc., which is leasing a facility in Bellmawr, Camden County.

Compassionate Sciences plans to open in a former T-shirt factory in an industrial park on Coolidge Avenue. Earlier this month, the operator announced it had also applied for a dispensary license in New York.

The New Jersey Health Department issued a statement saying Compassionate Sciences was the fifth nonprofit in the state to obtain a growing permit. Three have opened so far, including the Compassionate Care Foundation dispensary in Egg Harbor Township, near Atlantic City.

"The permit was issued after a comprehensive review including several site inspections, background checks of its corporate officers, and a review of its security operations and cultivation facility," the Health Department said.

Compassionate Sciences estimated that cultivation will take about three months, after which the Health Department will test the product for pesticides and contaminants, and then issue a license to open.

"We look forward to providing New Jersey patients suffering from painful and debilitating conditions with the high-quality cannabinoid medicines that they need and deserve as soon as possible," Compassaionate Sciences said in a statement.

The other two dispensaries in the state are Greenleaf Compassion Center of Montclair and the Garden State Dispensary of Woodbridge. Breakwater, in Cranbury, was granted a permit to grow marijuana in November but has yet to open.

The dispensaries are open only to New Jersey residents who have registered with the Health Department and who have obtained certifications from registered doctors stating they have been diagnosed with one of a dozen qualifying medical conditions. Among them are cancer, HIV/AIDS, multiple sclerosis, epilepsy, and glaucoma.