THE FOLLOWING IS A NEWS-GAZETTE STORY BY JENNIFER BAILEY
ABOVE: Michael Mervis, left, and others (Seven Point of Illinois CEO Brad Zerman in back row on left) listen as Laura Jaramillo speaks about a proposal for a third cannabis dispensary and other development at Thursday’s meeting of the Danville Planning and Zoning Commission.
DANVILLE — A proposal for a cannabis dispensary partnered with a Casey’s truck stop and other potential development received the backing of the Danville Planning and Zoning Commission on Thursday night.
The request for a special-use permit now goes before the Danville City Council at its June 18 meeting.
However, if the city council doesn’t grant its approval, MariWorks LLC of Chicago and partner nuEra said they have also talked Tilton officials about another possible site, which would have only a dispensary, on vacant land near the Mach 1 truck stop on Georgetown Road off Interstate 74.
Laura Jaramillo, one of the owners of the social-equity license for a cannabis dispensary in Vermilion County and who works with nuEra, said the second possible site is due to a tight timeline; they have to tell the state by July how they will be using their dispensary license.
Tilton Mayor Billy Wear said he personally thinks the current dispensary in the village, Molly’s Joint, is enough for its population of 2,800. He said a development group and land agent had discussions about nuEra, but he doesn’t want the village to be “a pawn” in their game.
Wear said the village board has been considering capping dispensary licenses at one or two. The board next meets June 20.
Wear also said he doesn’t want to get in “a development war” with Danville over a dispensary, and that it can “stay in Danville.”
Jaramillo said the license is for this area of the state, and they need an approved site.
The Danville zoning commission voted 6-0, with one commissioner absent, to recommend the special-use permit.
The MariWorks proposal targets what is now farmland south of I-74, and would include development of a Casey’s truck stop and more at the site, in addition to the nuEra dispensary.
A year ago, MariWorks dropped its request before the Danville City Council for a special-use permit for a dispensary at 500 Eastgate Drive near Danville Metal Stamping, finding it was unlikely the council would override, via a supermajority, the zoning commission’s recommendation against the permit.
The new request before the zoning commission asked it to consider development of land south of I-74 and west of Southgate Drive to allow for a cannabis dispensary to be operated in the B-3 general business zoning district as part of a larger development.
The property, owned by the Mervis family’s Riverbend Development, fits within “the very limited area” where aldermen have allowed cannabis dispensaries, Jaramillo said.
The property is part of 27.89-acre parcel.
Two other projects proposed north of I-74 at the Lynch Road exit were voted down, one by MariWorks and another from a different group, due to concerns about oversaturation. But the city council in December voted against expanding the area where cannabis dispensaries could locate in the city.
As proposed, the dispensary would be part of a plaza with a gas station/truck stop, quick-service restaurant and other industrial uses, Jaramillo said.
The undeveloped land will need a gas regulator and electricity brought to the site, at an estimated cost of more than $1 million, but also would have potential Ameren rebates, officials said.
With the businesses sharing the cost, the project could happen, Jaramillo and Michael Mervis said.
Mervis said Casey’s will be an attractive neighbor for a quick-service restaurant.
Danville Mayor Rickey Williams Jr. said dispensaries are safe, healthy competition is good and this site is further removed from most citizens in Danville. He said he thinks there will be more support from the council for this location.
He agreed that one of the biggest hurdles to development is infrastructure and noted the project would “give us a jump-start on other things.”
Williams said the city has “two great dispensaries here, and I support having a third.”
Representatives of the other two Danville dispensaries, Seven Point and Sunnyside, opposed the new plan, saying there were no final commitments for the other businesses, just potential. They added that other cities have capped the number of dispensaries allowed within their borders, such as Naperville, which has a population of 150,000 and has capped its licenses at three. Danville currently doesn’t have a cap on dispensary licenses.
Seven Point President and CEO Brad Zerman said a third dispensary will take customers away from the others and really hurt his business, which currently is losing money. Seven Point, which has now been open for about six weeks, required a $7 million investment, Zerman said.
In other business, the commission also recommended a special-use permit for a vape retail shop. The request from North Ridgeview LLC is to operate the shop in the B-2 highway commercial zoning district at 2601-2605 N. Vermilion St., in the strip mall with Mad Goat Coffee and Wingstop.
