Two companies have plans to open medical marijuana dispensaries in Squirrel Hill and the Strip District, while a warehouse on the North Side is being targeted for a cannabis growing and processing center.
Keystone Relief Centers will go before the city’s Zoning Board of Adjustment on May 25 to request a special exception to open a dispensary at 3885 Forward Ave.
On May 18, Cresco Yeltrah LLC is asking for the same from the zoning board as part of its plans to open a dispensary at 2112 Penn Ave. in the Strip.
The same day, an individual, Jack Riley, will seek two special exceptions as part his proposal to use part of the warehouse at 1501 Preble Ave. for marijuana growing and processing space.
All three plans are being advanced as the state prepares to awardthe 12 grower/processor permits and up to 27 dispensary permits across six regions in Pennsylvania, with decisions expected by the end of June.
Two of the grower/processor permits and five of the dispensary permits will go to southwestern Pennsylvania.
The Keystone Relief Centers dispensary would be located at the entrance to Squirrel Hill off the Parkway East on a parcel owned by the Buncher Co., where the development company once had its headquarters.
Among those involved in the application is former Allegheny County executive Jim Roddey, who said he is serving as a consultant for Keystone, although he is listed on the firm’s Securities and Exchange Commission filing as a director and a manager. He said he is not an investor.
Mr. Roddey said the company is made of a group of professionals, mostly in medical-related fields, who believe that medical marijuana can help people. He declined to name them, saying they wanted to remain private until the permits are rewarded. He said all were local.
“We have a group of investors — very serious, dedicated individuals, many of whom are doctors, pharmacists and researchers — who care very deeply about this,” said Mary Del Brady, a consultant who will become Keystone’s CEO if the firm is awarded a permit.
Another listed on the SEC filing was Nicholas Geanopulos, the longtime owner of Nicky’s restaurant on Grant Street. Ms. Brady said Mr. Geanopulos has family and friends who invested in the company, but that he has no active role.
The Squirrel Hill site would serve as the primary dispensary while satellite facilities are planned in Butler and Washington counties, Ms. Brady said. Keystone plans to rehab a building on the Buncher site and add trees and a walkway to improve the gateway to the community, she added.
“I think this is long overdue,” she said of medical marijuana. “There are certainly far more dangerous drugs, narcotics, that are on the market that can be replaced with this. It saves lives.”
Keystone, she said, already has started meeting with Squirrel Hill community groups to try to win their support and address concerns.
City Councilman Corey O’Connor, who represents the neighborhood, said he is planning a community meeting later this month to discuss the use. He described it as a medical facility that will be staffed by doctors.
“Everyone thinks they will be growing marijuana there. That’s not the case. It’s a secure pharmacy,” he said.
While Mr. O’Connor supports medical marijuana, he said he has yet to take a position on the proposed dispensary, explaining that he wants to hear what residents have to say first.
Cresco Yeltrah, the company proposing the dispensary in the heart of the Strip’s Penn Avenue retail corridor, is headed by the Hartley family, described as life-long Butler County business and community leaders on its website.
The family would be teaming with Cresco Labs, LLC, a medical cannabis cultivating and manufacturing company based in Chicago, to run the facility. Cresco Yeltrah officials could not be reached for comment Thursday.
Mike Lee, president and chairman of the board of directors of Strip District Neighbors, said the community development corporation will meet with representatives of the company next week to discuss the plan. It has yet to decide whether to support the proposal.
“It’s hard to take a position without knowing what their plans are,” Mr. Lee said.
City Councilwoman Deb Gross, who represents the Strip, could not be reached for comment.
Not much is known about the proposed medical marijuana growing and processing center on Preble Street in Chateau. Neither the applicant, Mr. Riley, nor representatives for the warehouse owner, Metro Burgh Properties, could be reached for comment.
According to the zoning board agenda, the proposal involves the renovation of the existing building to use for the growing and processing operations. In addition, 24 off-site parking spaces are planned at 1701 Franklin St.
The warehouse currently houses the Chateau Cafe and Cakery and other businesses.
In all, 22 companies have applied for dispenser permits in southwestern Pennsylvania. Another 22 have filed for grower/processor permits, although Mr. Riley is not listed among them on the state website.
credit:post-gazette.com
