CANNABIS CULTURE




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Review | Get In My Boca! What’s Happening at the Triangle?

Every time I go to the Aldi on Arthur Ashe at Broad St., En Su Boca tries to seduce me with its tequila and tacos perfume. It doesn’t work all the time, but I feel the pull when I’m browsing the nonsense in Aldi’s middle aisle. I once bought sweatpants there. I’m not...

What a Chilean Traveler Found in Richmond

Editor’s Note: We occasionally make space for outside voices whose perspectives help us see Richmond differently. This piece was submitted by Chilean journalist and multimedia storyteller Natalia Freire. Hidden gems. I like that expression. It’s the first thing that...

Northern Lights, Northern Lives: Queer Life Beyond the Lower 48

Northern Lights, Northern Lives: A Spectrum of Gender Across Alaska and the Yukon is a collection of 50 striking photographs of LGBTQ+ people and their allies that is set in the breathtaking landscapes of Alaska and Yukon. The images are accompanied by personal essays...

Richmond’s Shop Local Culture Shines in New Study

Richmond is ranked the number one city in America for supporting local businesses, according to a new national study from OnDeck. The report analyzed Instagram activity tied to hashtags like #shoplocal and #shopsmall across nearly 500 U.S. cities and found Richmond...

The BIG Richmond Summer Music Field Guide 2026

Trying to put together a list of shows in Richmond these days is becoming a pretty hard thing to do. The city has gotten really busy, but at least it’s not boring. There are more shows, festivals, DJ nights, and random Tuesday concerts happening in the River City than...

Cannabis Justice Moves Forward in Virginia After Years of Debate

Virginia’s effort to revisit outdated cannabis convictions is moving forward again, though in a revised form that shifts how people access relief. Governor Abigail Spanberger’s amendments to SB 62 / HB 26 replace the bill’s original automatic resentencing framework with a petition-based process. The legislation is intended to give courts the...

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Hemp Retailers Say New Virginia Cannabis Law Would Shut Them Down

With a major cannabis bill now awaiting Governor Abigail Spanberger’s decision, Virginia hemp retailers, farmers, and small business advocates are urging her to step in before it becomes law. The Cannabis Small Business Association (CSBA) and a coalition of hemp businesses are calling on the governor to use her amendatory authority to revise...

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As Virginia Legalizes Cannabis, New Penalties Spark Backlash

Virginia’s long-running effort to build a regulated cannabis marketplace has hit a new turning point this legislative session. Since adult possession became legal in 2021, lawmakers and stakeholders have spent years negotiating a retail framework to replace the unlicensed gray market with a structured, licensed system. Much of that work...

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“I Am the War on Drugs”

Editor’s note: In December 2025, the The Joint Commission on the Future of Cannabis Sales wrapped its final public meeting on the future marketplace. This interview with Eric Spencer happened at a CSBA meetup at Bingo Beer Co. in Richmond. Eric Spencer said it plainly. “And you are meeting, for probably the first time in your life,...

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