It was marijuana instead of champagne this year for some New Year’s Eve revelers in Colorado, who lit up in private smoking clubs allowed for the first time under the state’s new pot laws.
In Denver, people filled out an online application and paid a $30 fee to become part of Club 64, a private marijuana club named after the new pot law, Amendment 64. Members were advised of a private location in downtown Denver where they could attend a New Year’s Eve party with other smokers.
“It went really well,” said Robert Corry, an attorney who serves as general counsel for the group and helped shape the language of Amendment 64. “We rented out a retail shop for the evening. We had a DJ, music, some dancing, there was a bar and people brought alcohol, people brought food. It was a very warm, fun, happy evening.”
Corry said that the idea for a members-only club had been in the works for years, and that Amendment 64 had been crafted specifically to allow for groups of private smokers. The initial gathering drew hundreds of interested smokers, Corry said.
“We’re going to be getting together for periodic meetings and looking for a more permanent home. We hope to settle into a more stable spot in the future,” he said. “We have a couple of hundred members at least, judging by last night. We’re emerging from the shadows of prohibition, so there’s’ a lot of pent-up demand and interest.”
Corry said he hoped the group would eventually have a space that functioned like a bar, with a food and drink menu. For now, smokers bring their own pot to the party. Under Colorado law, individuals may now possess up to one ounce of marijuana and grow six marijuana plants. They are allowed to smoke in private places only, not in public.