Whoopi Goldberg’s WhoopFam cannabis company has entered into
a legal clash with Paterson, New Jersey’s convicted ex-Mayor Joey Torres, over its stalled efforts to open a recreational marijuana store in the city.Court documents reveal WhoopFam is countersuing for $167,000 from Torres’ House of HOPE nonprofit for launch costs tied to a retail space it leased under promises of city approval, NJ.com reports. The countersuit comes in response to Torres’ group coming after WhoopFam for $52,000 in unpaid rent after the company stopped payments when the store failed to secure municipal approval.
WhoopFam partnered with Torres’ nonprofit in September 2023 to lease a 1st Avenue building in Paterson for a planned dispensary. The company paid $5,665 in monthly rent for a year but stopped in September 2024 after the city withheld approval to open the space.
Torres launched House of HOPE after serving 13 years in prison to support formerly incarcerated people. His nonprofit included plans to link them with jobs at WhoopFam’s dispensary.
Court filings say Torres “indicated that he was absolutely sure that the subject property was already approved by the Paterson mayor and City Council for such use” as a marijuana retailer.
“Torres knew or should have known that his representation was not accurate,” WhoopFam’s counterclaim said.
The company even had backing from Paterson Mayor Andre Sayegh, who endorsed WhoopFam’s state license application in 2022. But by July 2023, the Paterson City Council proposed three other cannabis shops and excluded WhoopFam. Among the proposals, all three were denied due to zoning issues, as they were deemed too close to homes, schools, or places of worship.
In May, Torres’ nonprofit filed a landlord-tenant complaint claiming WhoopFam owed $52,514 in unpaid rent. In July, WhoopFam countersued, arguing Torres’ group actually owes them $167,681 for launch expenses, including a $60,000 application fee paid to Paterson for space that ultimately never received municipal approval.
House of HOPE doesn’t own the 1st Avenue property where WhoopFam planned its cannabis store
, but instead leases it from Paterson landlord Richard Salerno. Earlier this summer, a judge transferred the dispute from landlord-tenant court to the Law Division, where civil lawsuits are typically handled.RELATED CONTENT: Whoopi Goldberg’s Unfiltered Truth: Black Americans Face Iran-Level Hardship