Yes to cannabis craft growers in DeKalb, as city embraces second type of weed business in town

DeKALB – A second type of cannabis business is allowed to operate within the DeKalb city limits after the City Council recently said yes to inviting cannabis craft growers to put down roots in the area.

The city also expects two recreational cannabis dispensaries to open later this year. No craft grower petitions are under consideration, however, city staff said.

A petition to amend the city’s development code to account for craft cannabis growers was unanimously approved by the City Council at a recent meeting.

City Manager Bill Nicklas said it’s clear why the city supports the petition put forth by city staff. The proposal also was approved by the city’s Planning and Zoning Commission earlier this month.

“It’s a highly regulated, very safe type of handling of the product that ultimately gets for sale through the dispensaries,” Nicklas said. “In fact, dispensaries are happy to know that there are craft growers in the area. Craft growers can provide to local dispensaries if they’re within 15 miles. In this case, that’s what we’re talking about. We’re also talking about some limitations through our unified development ordinance, which is our development code, to have these allowed by the special use in the light industrial or industrial zone because there’s manufacturing going on and packaging and so forth.”

The approved amendment to city code stipulates that all cannabis business establishments are required to submit a security plan to the city that includes an enclosed, locked facility and will provide and maintain adequate security on the premises, including lighting, video surveillance and alarms.

Cannabis business establishments also are prohibited from allowing the consumption, inhalation or smoking of cannabis on-site, city documents show. It also stipulates that loitering on the cannabis business establishment’s property would not be permitted.

Nicklas said that one of the Planning and Zoning commissioners on the panel sided with city staff’s request after rejecting the city’s initial ask in 2019 to allow recreational cannabis dispensaries in town the following year.

“The [Planning and Zoning] Commission recommended unanimously including the vote of someone who voted against the dispensary but thought, ‘Here we are and it’s a pretty good idea considering what we have, an established safety record,’” Nicklas said. “It seems to be good in other parts of the state.”

Nicklas said that the city cannot be any less regulatory, but could offer more stipulations than the state of Illinois for potential craft cannabis growers.

City officials said that while DeKalb is not in the middle of courting any craft cannabis growers at this time, the city has drawn interest from business establishments of this type in the past.

Craft cannabis growers are the latest type of cannabis business establishment allowed to operate in DeKalb.

The city already has approved two special use permits enabling cannabis dispensaries to do business in town. In February, the City Council approved a dispensary permit for 305 E. Locust St. The majority women-led business, Canndid Spirit Too LLC, has a state permit and is expected to be open in time for Corn Fest in August.

In April 2020, the council approved a local permit for a dispensary at 818 W. Lincoln Highway, formerly the home of Book World. Since then, NuMed Partners LLC have successfully petitioned the city to approve extensions to its operational permit as they met continued stalls at the state level to obtain state of Illinois licensing.

The two cannabis dispensaries are on pace to open later this year, officials said.

Once the DeKalb recreational marijuana dispensaries are open, the business will mark the first of its kind in DeKalb County.