Dupage Policy Journal

The Woodridge Village Board heard a proposal for an upcoming cannabis dispensary during a meeting on Nov. 3.

"We had a few residents concerned about what are the concerns of traffic and or activities spilling beyond the use of the property here, which [the company] can actually talk more in-depth on," Director of Community Development Kimberly Clarke said. 

The proposal, she said, met many of the village's goals for the site on Boughton Road.

"The appropriateness of the use at this location... It's a highly visible commercial corridor where we want to see traditional retail locate," she said. "It meets all of the distance requirements that we've established in our local ordinance as well as the state's requirements. So there are no issues there."

The cannabis dispensary would be a special use tied to this specific application, she said. 

"So in the event that they decide to not pursue this location or abandon it, the special use would go away," Clarke said. "And then we would have an opportunity for somebody else to apply. So unlike special uses that are typically running with the land, this will run with this particular entity."

Justice Cannabis was launched in Illinois in 2014 and has remained focused on in-state projects. Representative Mitch Zaveduk said that his company had requested a special use permit from Woodridge for a dispensary set to be located at 900 Boughton Road. Justice Cannabis had hired a traffic consultant to study the area, and they found that any traffic increase would amount to less than 3%. The open facility, an old furniture shop, also was noted as having a large amount of parking.

As far as potential customers, Zaveduk said that patrons would have to be at least 21 years old to even enter the store, and all minors would be turned away immediately. The dispensary would also work to prevent customers from ordering more than a certain amount of products within a given time period. In addition, Justice Cannabis has hired private security specially trained for the cannabis business.

The proposed dispensary is expected to create approximately 22 new jobs in Woodridge: four part time and 18 full time. Six-to-12 employees will be on the premises during all open hours, with Justice Cannabis hoping to fill all open positions with locals. 

Zaveduk also said an additional sales tax would go to the village due to the extra tax on cannabis products, and that the company expects to sell approximately $5 million in products per year. 

The board ultimately accepted the proposal.