St. Charles council approves second recreational marijuana dispensary

A second recreational marijuana dispensary has been given approval to open in St. Charles.

A majority of city alderman this week recommended approval of a special use application for Consume Cannabis of St. Charles to operate in a 4,146-square-foot former sports bar location at 584 S. Randall Road.

Aldermen Ron Silkaitis if the 1st Ward and Rita Payleitner of the 2nd Ward cast the only "no" votes. Both opposed allowing recreational marijuana dispensaries in the city in a 2019 vote.

"I still don't believe we need this in St. Charles," Silkaitis had previously said. "It is not what our image is about, in my opinion."

The dispensary plans to open in the Randall Plaza shopping center on the city's west side. In October, the majority of city plan commissioners recommended approval of the special use application, with the condition that crosswalks, stop signs or speed bumps be installed to help control traffic flow and to increase safety for pedestrians.

Under St. Charles regulations, two recreational marijuana dispensaries can operate in the city - one on the east side of the Fox River and another on the west side. The city's first recreational marijuana dispensary, Zen Leaf, opened last year in the former Jared Jewelry store in the Main Street Commons shopping center.

This would be Consume Cannabis' fifth recreational marijuana dispensary in Illinois. The company also has locations in Oakbrook Terrace, Marion, Chicago and Carbondale, along with operations in Michigan and Arizona.

On-site consumption will not be allowed, company representative Jake Coward previously told plan commissioners. Plans call for a minimum of one licensed armed security guard in the building at all times staff is present, whether during public hours or not. The facility also will have a state-of-the-art security system, including camera surveillance of the entire facility, he said.

"We constantly monitor it on a 24-hour basis by a remote alarm company," Coward added. "On top of that, we work with a third party armed security provider, Silver Star. They secure all of our facilities."

Consume Cannabis of St. Charles would be open from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday.