The Marijuana Control Board voted to allow consumption of marijuana at retail stores, which, if approved by Lt. Gov. Byron Mallott, would make Alaska the first state to permit a regulated area for marijuana consumption outside of a person’s home or other private spaces.

The change allows for people to buy marijuana at a retail store and consume it in a designated area on the premises.

The board voted 3-2 in favor of the amendment, with Loren Jones, public health board member, and Peter Mlynarik, the public safety board member, dissenting.

The regulations will go to the Department of Law for a formal review before heading to Mallott’s desk.

The amendment functions as a placeholder; specifics as to what these establishments will look like will be decided at a later date, director Cynthia Franklin said. [Read more at Alaska Dispatch News]