Despite licensing chaos, lawsuits and a booming illicit weed market, New York's two dozen legal weed shops managed to pull in $83 million year-to-date, according to the state's cannabis regulator.

And now, New York will open five new retail shops, bringing the number to 27.

The new stores, three of which are the Big Apple, are expected to open this week, said John Kagia, director of policy for the Office of Cannabis Management (OCM) at a recent meeting.

Expanding The Market

Now, state regulators are expanding the market by opening a 60-day general application window to grow, process, distribute or sell marijuana with the expectation of issuing more than 1,000 new licenses. On Tuesday, the OCM extended the licensing deadline until Nov. 17 for those who already have a store location and Dec. 18 for those without, reported Buffalo News.

Also, on Tuesday, the OCM filed emergency regulations to expand its enforcement abilities against the thousands of unlicensed cannabis retailers.

"This will be an important accelerant of supply-chain capacity and create some relief for growers," Kagia said referring to NY's massive oversupply of cannabis harvested by the state's farmers who, among others, have borne the brunt of the stalled launch.

Existing Cannabis Operators Are Ready To Move

Medical marijuana operators in New York include such companies as the Cannabist Company Holdings Inc (OTC:CCHWF) (previously Columbia Care), Curaleaf Holdings (OTCQX:CURLF), MedMen Enterprises (OTCQB:MMNFF), Acreage Holdings (OTCQX:ACRHF), Green Thumb Industries (OTCQX:GTBIF) and PharmaCann, all of whom can begin retail recreational sales at one of their existing dispensaries as early as Dec. 29 with two more dispensaries six months after that.

But, it won't be cheap: There is an initial $20 million licensing fee, with $5 million due upfront. But they say they're ready to jump in.

"We expect New York to be the hub, or one of the hubs, for legal cannabis on the East Coast," said Curaleaf CEO Matt Darin. "And so we're very bullish and we've invested a lot of capital and time to be able to maximize the opportunity."