ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Mo. – Cannabis cafés may soon become a reality in some parts of unincorporated St. Louis County. The battle for recreational marijuana in Missouri is finally over; legalization takes effect on Monday.
“We get calls every minute, ‘Can we come yet?'” said Tom Bommarito, a partner with Greenlight Dispensary.
On Tuesday, the St. Louis County Planning Commission introduced a bill recommending new regulations to the city ordinance for Amendment 3, outlining rules for marijuana facilities in unincorporated parts of the county. This includes guidelines for, as they call it, marijuana consumption facilities or lounges.
“It kind of forced us to go pretty quickly, so the more prepared you are, the better off you are,” Bommarito said.
If the council approves the changes, people could eventually find marijuana products in other stores and even businesses dedicated to safely enjoying it together.
For lounges, this includes keeping locations 1,000 feet away from a school, church, or childcare center; 500 feet away from another dispensary; not being sold in liquor stores; removing the term “medical” and listing it as “adult-use,” and more.
The Cola Private Lounge has already been a marijuana café, per se, since September.
“We have a lot of folks that come here because they’re canna-curious or wanting to try things that they don’t have at home yet,” said Brennen England, founder of St. Louis Cannabis Club and The Cola Private Lounge. “So there’s nuance to it and there’s strategy, but people are going to want it.”
Jacob Trimble, the director of planning for St. Louis County, said in the following statement:
“While the county is unaware of any immediate plans for such facilities, we want to be prepared should an applicant come to us with a development application for such a use. “
“It makes sense both for us to want to celebrate culturally, but also on the corporate side to want to move their business forward,” England said.
More discussion on the proposal will be held by the planning commission in the coming weeks.
