Chicago's First Marijuana Dispensary Opens Wednesday

By Mae Rice in News on Dec 8, 2015 10:18PM

On Wednesday, Dispensary 33—Chicago’s first-ever licensed marijuana dispensary—opens at 5001 N. Clark St. According to retail consultant Richard Park, customers will be able to browse 7 to 10 marijuana strains on the premises, all sourced from two licensed Illinois cultivators: GTI (Green Thumb Industries) and Nature's Grace and Wellness.

Unfortunately for garden-variety stoners, the dispensary will only let in customers with a caregiver or patient ID card, as well as a valid government-issued ID. Still, the premises will be open from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. all week to accommodate demand. "We assume it's going to be very, very, very busy, based on the number of phone calls we've been fielding,” he said.

In fact, Park was so aware of the coming crowds that he wouldn’t name any specific strains in stock, worried a press shoutout would make the strain sell out. (He promised all the strands have “very fun names,” though.)

The dispensary should be easy to spot. “We’re not hidden," Park said. "We’re in a normal storefront."

Its exterior sounds roughly like a boutique's, as does its interior. Park says the space has a “retail aesthetic,” with 1900s-style botanic murals, and a paper art installation from artist and INDO founder Linsey Rosen.