The Montgomery location of Callie's Apothecary does not look like much. But standing on the concrete floors and surrounded by metal beams, owner Vince Schilleci described how the "pharmacy-adjacent" storefront will look.
And when Callie's opens — which Schilleci thinks could happen as early as April — it will likely be the first place in Alabama one can purchase legal medical cannabis. "We'll have someone come and check in, scan the card to make sure you are an actual patient that's been recommended medical cannabis," he said. "For privacy, you have to wait out here until you can come on to the sales floor. Our goal is to get people in and out as quick as possible, because it's a safety thing. We don't want people loitering."
The opening could be milestone, nearly five years after the Legislature passed a law authorizing medical cannabis and following years of litigation and thwarted licensing processes. Amanda Taylor, a medical cannabis patient advocate, has been a part of the commission's process since 2021. She has multiple sclerosis with 45 lesions on her brain and one on her spine. She welcomes the openings, but said in an interview Thursday that the delays took a toll.
"There's a part of me that my heart's dancing because we are so much closer. So there's more gratitude right now than anything," Taylor said. "The suffering, the undue suffering that the patients had to endure because of the lawsuits, that kept this away from the patients."
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