Denver wants to open the marijuana industry to those most impacted by the drug war. Some say it came too late.

Denver Social Equity Program applicants say a strict zoning rule is making it nearly impossible for them to launch their new cannabis businesses in an already supersaturated market.

After marijuana was legalized in 2012, Colorado leaders began creating rules and regulations for scores of people who were already lining up to take part in what has become a $2.2 billion retail cannabis industry.

State leaders took a hardline stance while creating cannabis industry rules, initially barring people with drug convictions from owning dispensaries or marijuana grow houses, for example.