![]() So, we spent a lot of money to make everything nice, upfront and clean. “Most dispensaries back then were dirty and dark - you felt like you were part of an illegal drug deal,” Karlebach says. After all, if the industry wants to be respectable, it needs to look the part, says Devra Karlebach, the company’s chief operating officer. That image is exactly the vibe that Nectar, an Oregon-based marijuana retail chain, wanted to avoid when it opened its doors in 2014. Support our coverage by becoming a digital subscriber.Seven cultivation locations operating under the Applegate Valley Organics brand supply a large percentage of the flower in Nectar’s retail stores.Įarly medical marijuana dispensaries established a well-known stereotype of seedy, hole-in-the-wall retail shops designed to fly under the radar of law enforcement. “On the record, I bought some things,” he said. While not providing specific details, Stephens indicated he did make a purchase. “As more cannabis businesses open, people will see the positive effects on the city, not just in terms of tax dollars but making shopping centers look nicer and providing 24/7 security with lighting.” ![]() “I think it’s exciting that are starting to open,” Stephens said Thursday. to 10 p.m., and will include vendors and special discounts to welcome new customers.Ĭosta Mesa Mayor John Stephens, a supporter of retail cannabis, was among the dispensary’s first customers. A grand-opening celebration is planned for Dec. Meanwhile, the new Costa Mesa dispensary is getting decked out and will soon feature murals of local beach scenes and other coastal effects. While that application recently hit a snag at the planning commission level, owners say they are confident an appeal will be successful. Taft also envisions expanding in Costa Mesa and has partnered with another cannabis retailer on a joint effort across Harbor Boulevard from 420 Central Newport Mesa called South Coast Safe Access. In addition to the Harbor Boulevard store, 420 Central in Santa Ana is expanding to fill out its 25,000-square-foot space to include marijuana cultivation and a consumption lounge - both of which have been sanctioned by the city. We have grows in Santa Ana for our products, and we package them here in Costa Mesa.” “We can honestly say the products we make come from Orange County. “We’re self-distributing everything,” he said. When the city of Santa Ana in 2014 granted the right for 20 medical marijuana collectives to do legal business, Taft won a lottery and one year later opened the first 420 Central, a “megastore” named for its street address, which transitioned to selling recreational products when the city granted that right in 2018.īoth the Santa Ana dispensary and the new one in Costa Mesa are supplied and served by Taft’s Measure X businesses in a vertical model that keeps operations local. Since then, Taft and his partners have opened a manufacturing and distribution company called the Healing Plant and CMX, a distribution facility. It garnered nearly 55% approval as Measure V withered on the vine. Taft actively threw his weight behind a new campaign, even hiring an airplane to sky-write messages of support for Measure X. “I said, OK, I’m a Costa Mesa-first guy - I’m going to support my city with Measure X.” “The city came to me, at the time it was a conservative council, and they said, ‘We aren’t ready for a dispensary in our city yet, would you be interested in making drugs instead of selling them?’” he recalled. ![]() By then, Taft’s interest had shifted as he saw more promise in backing an alternate cannabis plan - Measure X, which would allow for medical marijuana manufacturing, distribution, testing and processing in an industrial “Green Zone” north of the 405 Freeway.
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