LAKEVIEW — Hopes for a medical marijuana dispensary in Lakeview haven't burned out just yet.
MedMar Inc., which first proposed a Lakeview dispensary one year ago, wants to move into a different Lakeview location after its first was rejected in February.
MedMar now wants to move into 3812 N. Clark St., a two-story building with a currently vacant storefront, Ald. Tom Tunney's (44th) office confirmed Thursday. The building near Clark and Grace is two blocks north of Wrigley Field and about 1½ miles northwest of the location proposed last year, 2843 N. Halsted St.
MedMar Inc. plans to go before the Zoning Board of Appeals on Dec. 18, said Jill Peters, president of the Southport Neighbors Association. The board's agenda is not yet available.
Peters told DNAinfo Chicago that MedMar attorney Katriina McGuire informed her of the updated plans on Wednesday, providing little time to arrange a meeting with nearby residents to discuss the plans.
Click here for the full-size dispensary floor plan & security overview
Southport Neighbors are not set to meet again until January.
Not even Ald. Tom Tunney knew of the plans before this week, his chief of staff said late Thursday. It was then that ward officials connected MedMar with Peters.
Peters said she finds it "concerning" that MedMar is only approaching the community now, "five weeks before they intend to proceed" with the zoning hearing.
"This is not enough time for our community to fully prepare and respond," Peters said. "We don't know enough about it."
McGuire did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Last year, South East Lake View Neighbors initially supported MedMar's plans for the Halsted Street location, although some said they worried the dispensary would become a target for thefts. At the time, MedMar countered that crime rates dropped near dispensaries in other states because their added security guards and surveillance cameras deterred criminals.
MedMar planned to have the Halsted Street dispensary open seven days a week. Only four patients would be allowed inside at a time, and all clients would need to have a diagnosed medical condition like cancer, Parkinson's disease or severe fibromyalgia.
But neighbors and business owners turned against the dispensary in February, pushing Tunney to withhold his support, as well.
Tunney said then that neighbors had "spoken loudly," and he felt the state's rules "have made this pilot program difficult to enact in an urban neighborhood."
The news comes mere weeks after the Rosecrance Lakeview addiction recovery residence got approval from the zoning board after months of contention from neighbors.
More than 200 applicants sought state licenses for medical marijuana dispensaries last year. The pilot program allowed for 60 dispensaries statewide, and a handful of Chicago applications was accepted in February, including MedMar's.
In Uptown, Dispensary 33 is hosting an open house Nov. 14-15, making it likely the first to open in Chicago.
MedMar expects to open a dispensary in Rockford this month.
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