Two new cannabis dispensaries approved in Carol Stream
It’s official: The village of Carol Stream is big enough for three marijuana stores.
Carol Stream trustees this week agreed to allow two new cannabis dispensaries to open in the village.
They also rejected a proposal from a soon-to-be-open dispensary in the village, Bisa Lina, to limit the number of pot shops in the village and increase the distance between those types of businesses.
The village board on Monday voted 5-1 to approve special-use permits for Altius at 506 S. Schmale Road and CannaCloud at 27W261 North Ave.
The only no vote came from Trustee Mary Frusolone. She said she had been against such businesses in Carol Stream “from Day 1.”
Bisa Lina, then called Fuego Cannabis, received permission from the village in May 2023 to open in Carol Stream. The dispensary, which is yet to open, is owned by Veltiste Wellness.
Then in November 2023, Veltiste CEO Dev Patel sought to cap the number of cannabis dispensaries in Carol Stream.
A text amendment proposed by Patel would limit the number of dispensaries to two and require that they be at least 2.5 miles apart.
The sites for Bisa Lina and Altius are less than a mile apart.
Patel submitted articles citing the over-saturation of the market in several states and documents on the commonality of caps on dispensaries in other Illinois towns.
But earlier this month, the plan commission/zoning board of appeals voted 4-2 to recommend that the village reject the proposed text amendment. On Monday, the village board agreed to deny it.
The village had received several emails from people fearing that the proposed Altius location was too close to the early childhood Goddard School, 502 S. Schmale Road.
But during a Jan. 8 plan commission meeting, Carol Stream Assistant Planner Bravo Berisha said the distance between property boundaries was more than 225 feet, more than twice the 100-foot distance mandated by village ordinance.
In brief comments on Monday, CannaCloud attorney John Zemenak called cannabis dispensaries “problem-free.”
“The tax revenue is great, and the impact is nonexistent,” he said.
The Altius representative said demand for the product will set the market. “Let the market adjust and be the answer,” attorney Dan Shapiro said.