By Dermot Connolly
The status of a proposal to open a cannabis dispensary in the 3400 block of South Ashland Avenue appears to be officially undecided, but opponents are concerned it will be approved over their objections.
The Justice Cannabis Co. wants to open one of its BLOC-branded recreational and medicinal cannabis dispensaries at 3455-3459 S. Ashland Ave. in McKinley Park. The company would take over a corner site that includes a parking lot and a vacant, 2,760 square-foot building that formerly housed an insurance office and currency exchange. Justice Cannabis would reconfigure the facility to accommodate a waiting room, showroom, and sales area.
Led by Chicago-based civil rights attorney Jon Loevy, the company operates dispensary and cannabis farms in nine states, including a growing facility in downstate Edgewood. The Ashland Avenue site would be its first in Chicago. Loevy, a partner in the Loevy & Loevy law firm, did not respond to repeated Gazette Chicago requests for comment.
The BLOC name comes from the term for a group of people working together and building community.
Justice Cannabis met one of the requirements for a business license for the proposed dispensary when Loewy held a community meeting Feb. 6 at a Slice Factory beside the Ashland Avenue site to explain the proposal. The event drew good attendance, with area residents expressing varying opinions.
The next step requires a Chicago Board of Zoning Appeals appearance, because all cannabis facilities require special use permits from the zoning board.
Froy Jimenez, a Chicago Public Schools teacher and community activist in the area who opposes the business, said the facility already was approved by the Zoning Board at its April 21 meeting. But according to staff in the 11th Ward office, that has not happened. The matter was not listed on Zoning Board agendas online for either the April 21 or May 19 meetings.
Although the site is in the 11th Ward, alderpersons of both the 11th Ward and nearby 12th Ward are working together on the issue. Newly elected Alderwoman Julia Ramirez (12th) has expressed support for the plan and said she had met with Alderwoman Nicole Lee (11th) “about how to best work with her to support and work with the community to make it happen.”
Opposition and support
“There was huge opposition to it at the community meeting on Feb. 6,” Jimenez said. “We need more community input,” he added, asserting that the meeting at the Slice Factory was not sufficient because of a lack of Spanish translators and the location.
Meeting organizers said at the time that the Slice Factory might not have been an ideal location, but they wanted to find someplace close to the proposed site and convenient for residents of both the 11th and 12th Wards.
Jimenez said the presence of a dispensary would draw crowds and traffic problems to that location at the intersection of 35th Street and Ashland Avenue, and pointed out that the Chicago Rehab and Substance Abuse Treatment Center is located almost across the street from it, at 3520 S. Ashland Ave.
“I am a parent and a resident concerned about our youth,” he said.
“The alderwoman’s office clearly dropped the ball,” said Jimenez. “This is a clear example of her not including the community in the decision.”
An attempt to reach Lee for comment was unsuccessful.
The proposal also has significant community support.
“I think it is a good idea,” said Joan Dwyer, 91, a McKinley Park resident for more than 50 years. “Many people use [cannabis] and need it for health reasons, so why shouldn’t we have a dispensary in the neighborhood? It is a necessity for some people. My own doctor has recommended cannabis as a safer alternative to opioids” for chronic back pain. “I might try it but local residents shouldn’t have to travel far if they want or need it.”
Anna Schibrowsky, community development lead for the Bridgeport Alliance neighborhood organization, noted other benefits, saying, “It would bring a lot more foot traffic to that area of Ashland.” Schibrowsky explained she rides her bike as much as possible but currently avoids that area because vehicles are inclined to speed more there due to lack of businesses.
For more information, see https://www.blocdispensary.com/. For Bridgeport Alliance, email [email protected]. For Lee’s office, log on to www.chicago.gov/city/en/about/wards/11.html or call (773) 254-6677. For Ramirez’s, log on to https://www.chicago.gov/city/en/about/wards/12.html or call (773) 523-8250.