A new business that recently rolled into Fort Myers Beach has spurred a backlash from some nearby businesses and visitors, with some members of the Local Planning Agency voicing particular legal grievances. The business is the Queen of Weed truck, which has been set up near the beach’s Times Square.
Decorated with pot leaves, a mural of two green aliens smoking together, and the phrase, “The best weed in town,” the truck opens its doors, invites customers up its steps, and behind a green curtain to the interior of the truck. The doors specify, “Please be prepared to show ID,” and, “Maximum 2 at one time.”
The Queen of Weed truck is parked on Fort Myers Beach in accordance with a provision that allows temporary structures such as trailers and trucks to operate on the beach following Hurricane Ian. This provision is in place because many businesses have struggled to recover and repair their permanent structures.
The beach is full of varied opinions on the Queen of Weed truck.
“It was never here before so we shouldn’t have it now,” a pair of visitors told NBC2, saying they visited Fort Myers Beach frequently. “We don’t really want it here on the beach. There’s families and kids, so that’s our take on it.”
Another visitor who had come from Canada told NBC2, “There’s just one. I mean maybe if there was ten of them trying to set up in here, that would be a different story, but one? I don’t see anything wrong with it!”
A beachgoer told local station WINK, “Whether they were here before or they moved somewhere, any business is good, especially down here. This last year, really nothing has been going on until the start of this year. You see more people and businesses opening up,” highlighting the slow recovery of Fort Myers Beach.
Some members of the Local Planning Agency feel that the Queen of Weed is on shaky legal grounds to be operating on the beach in the first place. “After the hurricane, the town council generously decided in their emergency ordinance to create an ability for existing beach businesses to operate in temporary situations,” explained one member of the Local Planning agency during a community meeting. “It’s just somebody who’s come to lease space, and that is not at all what was in that provision, so I’m saying this in a public meeting to encourage the town council and the town staff to revisit that.”
While LPA members were clear that their objections were not based on the nature of the business, they insisted that the truck was not in line with the ordinance’s intent. The operations and compliance director of the Town of Fort Myers Beach, however, has reportedly said that the Queen of Weed is in full compliance with town ordinances, further saying that the town needs to allow the business to operate whether they like it or not.
As for the business’s choice of product, the truck’s operator told NBC2 that they sell CBD items. Under the federal 2018 Farm Bill, the truck is legally permitted to sell products that contain less than 0.3% THC by volume.
