BY Michael Malaszczyk and Lauren Feldman
Planet Nugg opened its doors to the public on Friday, becoming the third recreational marijuana dispensary on Long Island.
All three dispensaries—Strain Stars on Broadhollow Road, Happy Days Dispensary on Route 109, and Planet Nugg—are located in East Farmingdale.
In 2021, recreational marijuana was legalized for adults aged 21 and older. Aside from the Village of Babylon, which houses East Farmingdale, three other municipalities on the island have opted in as selling grounds for dispensaries: Brookhaven, Riverhead, and Southampton.
A dispensary has yet to open in these locations.
David Tubens, owner, said he wants Planet Nugg to be the flagship dispensary in New York.
“Not only in what we are,” he said. “But also in terms of educating the community.”
As a chiropractor, Tubens said, he’s seen how cannabis can have a positive effect on his patients.
“We’ve referred patients out for a medical prescription for a variety of reasons.”
He said some patients have tried everything, and cannabis is the only product that has helped them.
“We’ve had every kind of patient. And the beauty of that is I want to get rid of the stigma that cannabis is just for getting high. There’s so much more to it [we’re offering],” he said.
The store opened to a large crowd, including Town of Babylon Supervisor Rich Schaeffer.
“Besides being a great business, I saw it as a great opportunity to help the community,” Tubens told the LI Press at the grand opening. “I’m a parent first, first and foremost, I’m a homeowner in the town of Babylon, and I’m also a business owner. So I feel like, although having a dispensary is a great thing to have, I feel social responsibility. Fentanyl, an illegal drug, has really affected Long Island. And if we could just save one life, I believe that this, all this, is well worth it.”
“95 percent of Long Island has opted out of allowing people to open up cannabis dispensaries. It has been an incredible struggle trying to find a location,” he continued. “I want to commend the Town of Babylon and Rich Schaeffer because they were incredibly helpful from day one. I sat with [Schaeffer] and the town attorneys to talk through our vision, and they were very supportive.”
Schaeffer expressed support for the new business and agreement with Rubens about the importance of safe cannabis.
“The state did the legalization and then said, towns and municipalities come up with a plan,” Schaeffer said. “We’re usually good about figuring how to do things whenever challenges are thrown at us, and that’s what we did here.”
The scheduled grand opening of the 5,000-square-foot pot shop comes five months after Planet Nugg was originally planning to open in April. In addition to a retail space, Tubens also plans to host community classes on cannabis education to help the community better understand the substance and how to partake safely and legally.
COO Walter Bonilla said, “We have big dreams of turning the facility into a cannabis destination, making it more than just a pot store, but a center for educational seminars and pop-ups. We really want to be involved in the community.” He added that the store is already working on a partnership with Mothers Against Drunk Driving.
Bonilla said he is confident that even if other stores open on the island, it won’t impact what Planet Nugg has to offer.
“There’s a lot of room for multiple stores [on Long Island], but we know that we’re going to lead the way in customer experience. Everyone that walks through the door is going to feel welcome, so we know moving forward people are going to want to be a part of this.”
– Additional reporting by Timothy Bolger
