How we approach cannabis retail.

Union Chill exists to make legal cannabis feel like the rest of small-business Corning: useful, honest, and rooted in the place. This page is the moral spine of the company — what we believe, what we do not do, how we comply, and our role in this town.

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Why we do this work

Cannabis prohibition cost this region.

Cannabis prohibition cost New York decades of lost civic, medical, and economic opportunity, with disproportionate harm in Black and brown communities. The 2021 MRTA was a step toward making that right — a legalization framework that centered equity, not just revenue.

Union Chill operates with that history in view. As a CAURD-licensed dispensary (the equity-eligible-operator track), we have a specific mandate: build a legal cannabis business that meets the standard the framework set, and treat the responsibility seriously.

What we believe about cannabis

Six beliefs that shape every shelf.

Plain-English principles. We re-read these quarterly.

Principle · 01Cannabis is a substance, not a lifestyle.It is a tool. Some adults use it for sleep, some for social, some for creativity, some for pain. None of those is a personality.

Principle · 02Lab transparency is the price of admission.Every product comes with a Certificate of Analysis (COA). If we cannot show you the COA on request, we do not sell the product.

Principle · 03Education beats marketing.A 21-year-old should be able to walk in, ask any question, and walk out with a clear answer — not a sales pitch.

Principle · 04Responsibility includes telling people no.If a customer is intoxicated, underage, or showing signs of dependency, we decline the sale. Every time. No exceptions.

Principle · 05The communities harmed by prohibition come first.NY MRTA centered equity. Our hiring practice prioritizes opportunity for BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, veteran, and formerly-incarcerated communities.

Principle · 06Cannabis is a place-bound product.Buy it here, use it on private NY property. Federal law prohibits crossing state lines. We card every visitor and we will not facilitate cross-border transport.

If we do not know the answer to a customer’s product question, we will say so and find out.

What we do not do

Some things are not on the table.

Self-imposed limits, posted publicly so we can be held to them.

NO·We do not advertise free product, giveaways, or "first-timer free" promotions.
NO·We do not make health claims about cannabis.
NO·We do not market to anyone under 21.
NO·We do not run promotions that incentivize over-consumption.
NO·We do not stock products from cultivators we cannot trace to an NY OCM license.
NO·We do not pay our budtenders on commission.

Compliance posture

Regulation is the floor.

The New York Office of Cannabis Management writes the rules. We follow them — every line, every revision, every audit. 9 NYCRR Part 119 is the operating regulation; CAURD-25-000269 is our license number. Our compliance lead spent four years at OCM before joining the team.

But regulation is the floor. Our internal standards run higher than what OCM requires — tighter age verification, longer COA retention, broader ingredient transparency, stricter advertising restrictions. We are accountable to our customers first, our license second.

License: NY OCM-CAURD-25-000269. Operating under 9 NYCRR Part 119 (NY Marijuana Regulation and Taxation Act). Compliance lead with 4 years at NY OCM. Internal standards exceed regulatory minimums on age verification, COA retention, ingredient transparency, and advertising restrictions.

License #: OCM-CAURD-25-000269

Authority: NY OCM

Regulation: 9 NYCRR Part 119

Authorizing law: 2021 MRTA

Our role in Corning

Useful, honest, rooted in the place.

Three minutes from Centerway. A block from where the Wegmans used to be. The Centerway exit drops onto Pulteney; we are about 200 yards east. We aim for our shop to feel like the rest of small-business Corning — useful, honest, and not trying to be anything it isn’t.

We sponsor the small. We don’t sponsor the loud. We donate to local literacy programs, the Corning food pantry, and Seneca Lake watershed initiatives. We do not put our logo on those donations.

Our employees live here. Our suppliers operate here. The customers we serve drive in from Painted Post and Mansfield and across the I-86 corridor — they are our neighbors. We try to be a good one.