Anchorage Assembly set to waive protest on six marijuana license renewals

Six marijuana license renewals across four Anchorage businesses would proceed without municipal objection under two resolutions Assembly Chair Anna Brawley brought before the Anchorage Assembly on Tuesday.

AR 2026-260 approves 2026-2028 municipal renewals for three businesses and waives protest of their state licenses ahead of the Sept. 18 deadline: Vital Gardens on Nigh Road, held by Zakary Kessler; Bad Habits on Schoon Street, held by Colleen Howard; and MaryJane's Cannabis Emporium on Jewel Lake Road, held by Kerry Teekell. The municipal clerk found none of the three owe taxes, fees or fines.

AR 2026-259 waives protest on three Secret Garden Cannabis licenses in Fairview, all held by James M.P. Thornton: retail license No. 12768, manufacturing license No. 12769 and cultivation license No. 12770. Those municipal licenses are not up for renewal this year, so only the state renewals are at issue, with an Oct. 24 deadline.

One license did not clear so easily. AK Legend Gardens, at 7750 King St. in the Taku/Campbell area, drew a conditional protest of its state cultivation license after an Aug. 18 public hearing. The municipality cited $12,760.98 owed and a pending Land Use Enforcement inspection.

Alcohol and Marijuana Control Office Director Kevin Richard wrote that the state board "may approve the license renewal, but require the applicant to show to the board's satisfaction that the requirements of the local government have been met."