A custom, vertically integrated regulatory gatekeeper and e-commerce platform built to navigate the complex compliance and geographic logistics of cannabis delivery in the 1000 Islands.
🌐 Live Site: northernlegacyny.com
- About the Project
- Key Features
- Development Roadmap
- Tech Stack & Architecture
- Getting Started
- Environment Variables
- Database Seeding
- Testing & QA
- Project Documentation
- License & Confidentiality
- Contact
Northern Legacy is a license-pending microbusiness dispensing cannabis products in the 1000 Islands region of Upstate New York. Built on the MERN stack, this platform acts as a custom, vertically integrated regulatory gatekeeper, enabling fully compliant e-commerce ordering for both Mainland (Land) and soon to be implemented Maritime (Water) delivery.
Built to handle the extreme geographic complexity of the St. Lawrence River border region, the system enforces strict geofencing, dynamic delivery clustering, and real-time state compliance limits.
- 🛒 Dynamic Cart & Compliance Engine: Global state management via Zustand that calculates real-time New York State legal purchase limits (3.0 oz flower / 24.0 g concentrates) and blocks checkout if limits or inventory maximums are exceeded.
- 🗺️ Border-Zone Geofencing: Integrates Google Maps Places & Geometry APIs to enforce a strict 30-mile delivery radius while actively detecting and blocking addresses that cross the international boundary into Canada.
- 🚤 Anchored Logistics Algorithm: A custom, first-come-first-served delivery routing system. The first user to book a delivery window drops a geographic "anchor." Subsequent users can only select that time slot if their verified address falls within an 8-mile radius of the anchor, preventing extreme driver routing.
- 💳 Tokenized Payment Vault: A mocked high-risk payment flow allowing users to securely link and save Digital ACH (Aeropay) or PIN-Debit methods to their user profile, featuring dynamic cashless ATM convenience fees.
- 🔐 The Compliance Gate: Initial UI scaffolding for mandatory 21+ age gating and profile anonymization/deletion to comply with consumer data privacy laws.
- 📱 Responsive E-Commerce UI: Fully responsive product grid, fractional weight conversions (e.g., displaying decimal ounces as 1/8 oz or 1/4 oz), and QR-code receipt generation for secure in-person handoffs.
Development is structured across strategic phases to systematically roll out critical operational pillars. The foundational platform is currently live, with advanced logistics and administrative features actively in development:
- Phase 1: Foundation & Mainland Logistics: Core MERN platform build, dynamic Zustand cart logic, biometric compliance gating, and implementation of the Haversine "Dynamic Anchor" algorithm for land-based delivery routing.
- Phase 2: State Compliance (Metrc): Automated, bi-directional API integration with the NYS Metrc system for real-time outbound sales reporting and incoming wholesale manifest screening.
- Phase 3: Dispatch & Administration: Rollout of the Admin Dashboard allowing management to view active orders, manage inventory, and visualize delivery routes.
- Phase 4: In-Store Retail: Implementation of the Budtender Portal / POS, connecting physical storefront sales directly to the centralized inventory and compliance engine.
- Phase 5: Maritime Expansion: Integration of Maritime (Water) Delivery, enabling dockside drops via Google Plus Codes and dynamic anchor mapping logic.
- Phase 6: Fleet Operations: Deployment of the Offline-First Driver PWA allowing delivery staff to perform dual-scan handoffs and record GPS telematics offline.
Frontend:
- React.js (v18+)
- Vite (Build Tooling)
- Zustand (Global State Management)
- React Router DOM
- Standard CSS & Dynamic Inline Styles
- Google Maps API (Autocomplete & Spherical Geometry)
Backend & Database:
- Node.js & Express.js
- MongoDB Atlas / Mongoose ODM
- JSON Web Tokens (JWT) & bcryptjs (Auth & Security)
To run this application locally, you will need Node.js installed and access to the MongoDB Atlas cluster.
git clone [https://github.com/hughmorris01/northern_legacy.git](https://github.com/hughmorris01/northern_legacy.git)
cd northern-legacyThis project uses a monorepo structure. You must install dependencies for both the frontend and backend.
# Install backend dependencies
cd backend && npm install
# Install frontend dependencies
cd ../frontend && npm installOpen two separate terminal windows or a split terminal.
# Terminal 1 (Backend)
cd backend
npm run server
# (Server will start on http://localhost:5000)
# Terminal 2 (Frontend)
cd frontend
npm run dev
# (Vite UI will start on http://localhost:5173)Use env.example to create a .env file in the root backend and frontend directories. Do not commit these files to version control.
Backend (/backend/.env)
PORT=5000
MONGO_URI=mongodb+srv://<username>:<password>@cluster0...
JWT_SECRET=your_jwt_secret_key
GOOGLE_CLIENT_ID=your_google_oauth_client_id
Frontend (/frontend/.env)
VITE_API_URL=http://localhost:5000
VITE_GOOGLE_MAPS_API_KEY=your_google_maps_key
VITE_GOOGLE_CLIENT_ID=your_google_oauth_client_id
To quickly populate your local MongoDB database with mock data for testing, you can run the included seeder scripts. Ensure your .env file is properly configured with your MONGO_URI before executing.
From the /backend directory:
# Import all dummy data (Users, Products, Orders)
npm run data:import
# Destroy all data (Clear the database)
npm run data:destroyTargeted Seeding Commands:
npm run data:users- Imports only mock usersnpm run data:products- Imports only mock productsnpm run data:orders- Imports only mock orders
Quality assurance is strictly integrated into the development lifecycle.
- User Acceptance Testing (UAT): A rigorous manual testing protocol ensures all business constraints (inventory race conditions, geofencing, limits) function flawlessly under simulated real-world scenarios.
View the full UAT Protocol & Evidence.
This project follows a strict Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC) tailored for heavily regulated industries. Comprehensive documentation, including the PRD, TDD, and architectural overviews, can be found in the /docs directory.
👉 View the complete Documentation Guide
Proprietary Software. This source code is the confidential and proprietary property of Excelsior Genetics, LLC. Unauthorized copying, distribution, or modification is strictly prohibited.
Greg Farrell - Lead Full-Stack Engineer
📧 Email: greg.farrell82@gmail.com
📱 Phone: (585) 439-8235
🔗 LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/gregory-farrell
Project Link: https://github.com/hughmorris01/northern_legacy