The 420 festival will be held on April 29.
OG Article: here.
View our Fair Use Policy: here.
This story was republished with permission from Crain’s Detroit and written by Arielle Kass.
The city of Detroit approved its first festival allowing the legal consumption of cannabis, a music festival to be held later this month.
The 420 Cannabis Music Festival will take place on April 29 at 2000 Brooklyn St. and adjacent areas. The indoor/outdoor event will allow for the consumption of cannabis on site beginning at noon and lasting through the end of the day. In approving the request for consumption at the festival, members of the city council said they appreciated the transparency of the process and the fact that D & G Venture had produced other events in the state that had gone off smoothly. The company said it was their sixth in Michigan, and other cannabis-centric events had less fighting and fewer arrests than those centered around alcohol.
“We see other cities taking advantage of this opportunity,” said Council President Pro Tem James Tate, who helped write the city’s cannabis ordinance. “Now, we’re celebrating the opportunity for this industry to grow in the city of Detroit.”
Tate said the festival’s approval was a way to “fully execute” the city’s ordinance. Council Member Fred Durhal said the approval was a way to “follow the will of the people.” Still, there were some concerns. Council Member Latisha Johnson asked whether the festival was required to have “budtenders” or people who monitored consumption at the event. That isn’t required, but organizers said state laws limiting how much cannabis a person could purchase would remain in effect.
This is the third 420 Music Festival in Detroit, but the first with legal consumption. General admission tickets are $30 and the block party-style festival features several DJs as well as live musical performances.
The requirements for holding the event included private security, city permits, and a business license, in addition to the council vote. It was approved 7-0; council members Scott Benson and Gabriela Santiago-Romero were absent.
“My experience with these events, they’ve been safe, they’ve been fun, they’ve been entertaining,” said Council Member Coleman Young II. “I look forward to other events in the future.”
