Tuesday night’s Danville City Council meeting included the return of Seven Point CEO Brad Zerman. Last fall, Zerman’s company received permission to build Danville’s second cannabis dispensary; at 388 Eastgate Drive, Lot 1, just off Lynch Road.
Construction has not yet begun, as the state has not issued any new licenses due to pending litigation. The plaintiffs are parties that did not receive a cannabis dispensary license from the state, but feel that they should have.
Seven Point CEO Brad Zerman states his case before the Danville City Council for a “Consumption Lounge” at the future cannabis dispensary on Eastgate Drive.
While waiting for the issues in court to be worked out, Zerman has requested that Seven Point’s future Danville facility be allowed to include a “consumption lounge.” The lounge would be located upstairs from the store portion of the facility, providing customers with an opportunity to use the products they have purchased. Zerman says, it is not absolutely necessary to have this lounge to make a profit. But on the other hand, he sees it as a way to keep up with what’s happening in the industry.
AUDIO: We don’t need the consumption lounge. We’re just a cutting edge company trying to get involved in things that are happening. This is part of the state law. The state has authorized local governments to allow on premise consumption and dispensaries. There’s one in Mundelein, Illinois that’s working great. We think that we could do the same thing here.
Planned location for Seven Point’s adult use cannabis dispensary at Lot 1, 388 Eastgate Drive, just off Lynch Road.
But Danville Mayor Rickey Williams, Jr says he believes too much risk is involved, and stated his opinion to the Council after Zerman’s presentation.
AUDIO: I’ve worked really hard to be as progressive as possible. However, I believe that this creates a safety issue. You can’t have someone sitting around getting high for a couple of hours, and then expect them to drive and be functional and not cause problems. So I support people smoking cannabis in their own homes, but I do not support them doing so and then driving.
The mayor also brought up the possibility of second hand smoke affecting someone who has stopped smoking himself but is still hanging around before leaving. Zerman stated that adequate ventilation would be provided. No final vote was taken by the City Council.
