Some dispensaries get a headline for a grand opening. The Cannabis Place has been in the news mostly for fighting: first for a storefront, then for its right to stay open. The Middle Village shop at 74-03 Metropolitan Avenue is run by founder and CEO Osbert Orduña, and its website describes the business as a service-disabled-veteran- and minority-owned enterprise founded by a U.S. Marine Corps Iraq War veteran. Its CAURD license is one of the conditional licenses New York reserved for justice-involved entrepreneurs.
A year-long search for a storefront
Orduña's license came early, but a location did not. In March 2023, THE CITY (republished by the Amsterdam News) followed The Cannabis Place as an example of how hard it was for early CAURD licensees to open. According to that reporting, the state's social-equity fund first offered a site in Jamaica, which Orduña's team turned down because bus lanes would complicate deliveries. A second option in Astoria fell through after a weeks-long wait for the fund's response, by which time the landlord had moved on; the fund also flagged a potential conflict with another fund-backed site nearby. Nearly two months after receiving the license, the company still had no storefront.
The team eventually landed on a former Chase Bank building on Metropolitan Avenue. That was not a quiet choice either. At a Queens Community Board 5 meeting at Christ the King High School in June 2023, the proposal drew pointed opposition from some local officials and residents, while the board's liquor and cannabis committee chair argued that a regulated shop was preferable to unlicensed sellers. Orduña told the board that a large share of the company's existing customers already lived in and around Middle Village, and the plan included airport-style screening, security staff and opaque windows.
The store finally opened on March 16, 2024, and QNS reported it as the ninth adult-use dispensary to open in Queens. That July, QNS also reported that burglars hit the dispensary along with other shops in the area.
Leading the 2025 proximity lawsuit
The phrase "fought for the market" comes from what happened next. In July 2025, New York's Office of Cannabis Management (OCM) said it had been measuring the required 500-foot buffer between dispensaries and schools incorrectly, a reversal that put roughly 150 already-approved businesses in jeopardy. On August 15, 2025, twelve New York City dispensary owners sued OCM, and Spectrum News identified Orduña as the lead plaintiff. At the time, his own license was weeks from its renewal date.
A proposed court order in September 2025 let affected shops keep renewing under the earlier measuring method through February 15, 2026, while Orduña publicly pushed for a permanent fix rather than temporary relief. Lawmakers delivered one: Governor Kathy Hochul signed S9155/A10140, which, according to OCM, lets licensees approved before February 11, 2026 continue operating and renewing at their current locations. State data now shows The Cannabis Place's CAURD license (OCM-CAURD-24-000080) as active through 2028.
For shoppers, the practical upshot is stability. A store that spent much of 2025 unsure whether it could renew now has a clear legal footing at its current address, and so do the more than 100 other dispensaries the law covered. Orduña's role in that outcome is a large part of why this shop is known well beyond Middle Village.
Free delivery is the core of the model
The Cannabis Place leans on delivery more than most single-storefront shops. That makes sense given Orduña's early objection to a Jamaica site over delivery logistics. Its website promises no-fee, same-day delivery reaching multiple New York City boroughs, Long Island and Westchester, and calls the service the largest, fastest and most discreet free delivery operation in New York and New Jersey. That is the shop's own claim, and we have not independently tested it. The company also runs a second dispensary in Jersey City at 1542 John F. Kennedy Boulevard.
The rewards program is unusually detailed. The website lists four tiers:
- Bud: 1 point per dollar
- VIP: 1.5 points per dollar
- Diamond: 2 points per dollar
- Elite: 2.5 points per dollar
Referrals earn 150 points when a friend spends $100 or more on a first order. The site also advertises discounts for seniors, first responders and teachers, plus rotating "All Day Deals." Our guide on how to save at New York dispensaries explains how to stack loyalty points with daily specials.
Product categories on the site cover flower, pre-rolls, vapes, edibles, concentrates, topicals, tinctures, CBD and accessories. No standing brand list appears on the site, so the live menu is the place to check stock.
Hours and getting there
The Cannabis Place's website lists Queens hours of 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday. The state's licensing record shows shorter hours (closing at 9 p.m.), so call (800) 296-7138 if you are cutting it close.
The shop is on Metropolitan Avenue near 74th Street. The Q54 bus runs along Metropolitan Avenue, and the M train's Middle Village–Metropolitan Avenue terminal is roughly a 15-minute walk west. Because it is a former bank branch on a commercial strip rather than a mall, plan on street parking if you drive. Expect security screening at the door: the plan Orduña presented to the community board included airport-style screening devices and both armed and unarmed guards, and the July 2024 break-in is a reminder of why. Keep your ID handy, since every customer must show valid identification proving they are 21 or older.
Middle Village's growing set of licensed shops
When The Cannabis Place opened, it had this part of central Queens nearly to itself. That has changed. State records now show Flower Hill at 79-28 Metropolitan Avenue, a few blocks east, which opened in June 2026, plus several licensed shops in neighboring Ridgewood, including Happy Alta on Fresh Pond Road and Late Bloomers on Myrtle Avenue. Maspeth's Grand Avenue has added Flower Power Dispensers and CannaBees.
The Cannabis Place's edge over these newer neighbors is its delivery reach and tiered rewards. Its story is also part of the appeal: some shoppers will choose it because of its role in the proximity fight. For a broader comparison, see our list of the best Queens dispensaries right now.
Who should shop here
- Middle Village, Glendale and Ridgewood locals who want a licensed shop on their own commercial strip.
- Delivery-first customers across the boroughs who would rather not travel at all.
- Veterans, teachers, seniors and first responders, who all have posted discounts.
- Shoppers who care about who they buy from. This is a veteran-led equity licensee that went to court on behalf of the wider retail market.
First-timers should read up on dispensary etiquette, ID and payment before visiting, and can check today's deals for comparison.