More than 150 legal cannabis dispensaries across the state are being told they’ll have to shut down because of an error in how the state measured their proximity to churches or schools.

The state’s Office of Cannabis Management notified 152 dispensaries — including 88 in New York City — that current law mandates that cannabis shops must be at least 500 feet away from the property lines of schools or houses of worship.

But when the stores were originally approved by the state, the measurement was taken from the entrances of the buildings instead.

Although the state says open businesses don’t need to shut down immediately, they likely won’t have their licenses renewed — a process that needs to be done every two years — unless the state Legislature passes legislation allowing a change to the law. 

In a letter obtained by NY1 sent to licensed operators on Monday, Felicia Reid, deputy executive director and acting executive director of the NYS Office of Cannabis Management said: “For all pending and future application reviews, OCM will assess locations under the standard of the statute.”

“As a licensee, you are not presently required to change the location of your business; however, your location will become an issue at the time of license renewal. OCM cannot use the past unlawful standard of review to consider a license upon renewal,” she added.

In an interview Tuesday, Reid said she met with members of the state legislature to try and get them on board with backing an amendment to the law that allows currently licensed dispensaries to stay open in their current locations. 

“One of the things that I want to make sure of that I am doing, that leadership is doing, is the only way in which we can start to build trust, rebuild trust, build integrity, is if we’re going back to what the law said,” Reid said. 

“If we’re doing anything other than that, that is going to be setting folks up to not succeed and so although I recognize deeply how difficult this announcement is and has been,” she continued.

Some licensed businesses are preparing for their renewal hearings with OCM within the coming weeks. Reid told NY1 there will be a grace period permitting businesses to stay open, despite having their license renewal denied, as legislation is drafted and presented before state lawmakers who will have the final say. 

OCM staff later explained to NY1 that the agency is working on an advisory modeled after the way the State Liquor Authority operates that would give businesses legal protection to stay open with an expired license.

Although Gov. Kathy Hochul’s office is setting up a $15 million fund allowing affected businesses to claim up to $250,000 to help them relocate and restart, some argue that number doesn’t come close to helping recoup expenses.

“A lot of these folks have been waiting years to open their doors, delayed because of lawsuits, injunctions and, you know, bureaucratic delays. And after all that, after they put their careers on hold, after they’ve invested into these places,” Kaelan Castetter, co-founder of The Growv and managing director at Castetter, said.

“They’re being told, ‘sorry, here’s a check for $250,000.’ It’s heartbreaking,” he added.