Dispensary33 aims to open shop on West Loop's restaurant row

In a growing trend, Dispensary33 is the latest weed shop that is looking to open in the booming West Loop.

The Andersonville-based Dispensary33 has moved ahead with a letter of intent to open a second location at 1152 W. Randolph St. Opening there would place it in the epicenter of West Loop’s restaurant row.

“As a locally owned, Chicago store, we think the West Loop is a quintessentially Chicago neighborhood that will be a great cultural fit,” Paul Lee, co-owner and general manager of Dispensary33, told Block Club Chicago.

Dispensary33 will likely have immediate competition in the area. NuMed Chicago is seeking to open a location at 935 W. Randolph St., and Natural Care Company is looking to start a business at 810 W. Randolph St.

Dispensary33 will need to obtain a zoning change and a special use permit before it can conduct business in that space. Chicago’s Zoning Board of Appeals in the meantime is set to rule on two other dispensary proposals in the West Loop.

In 2015, Dispensary33, 5001 N. Clark St., was the first medical cannabis dispensary to open in Chicago.

The state of Illinois’ legal cannabis law gave the OK to existing medical dispensaries to work their way into recreational sales. At that time, Dispensary33 was one of a few cannabis shops operating in Chicago in time for the legal sales.

The shop has partnered with the Andersonville business community for events in the neighborhood, which includes the Waldos Forever Festival. It has also invited local Girl Scout troops to sell cookies in front of the store.

The new dispensary is slated to be two times the size of the location in Andersonville. The new location is a recently renovated commercial property that was originally built in 1917, according to a real estate listing.

The new store will boast an indoor, four-car garage for off-street deliveries of cannabis products.