Springfield Business Journal_2020-11-02

Leaders in Safety, Environmental Consulting & Training 2259 N Burton Avenue Springfield, MO 65803 417-714-4808 or 833-OSHA-HLP SAFETY AT AN AFFORDABLE PRICE midamsafety.com Kim Andrews plans to open Ozarx Botanicals by late November. Nancy Price: Opening on a limited basis is an inconsistent way to operate. 26 · SBJ.NET NOV. 2-8, 2020 NEWS Proud to partner with Ozarks Technical Community College Call Rich Today! New OTC campus in Republic OTC Republic Campus operations Oct. 19 and sold out of product in two days, according to media reports.  Both N’Bliss and Fresh Green are charging around $60 per one-eighth ounce of marijuana, according to their websites. Lopez declined to disclose the planned pricing at Old Route 66 Wellness, but he said it would be less than $60 an eighth. Under inspection Missouri Department of Health and Human Services of- ficials previously said the state has been inspecting facilities for cultivation, testing and dispensaries in a staggered ap- proach over the past few months. The pro- cess is designed to ensure product can flow seamlessly throughout the state.  However, local entrepreneurs say the budding industry has a low supply of prod- uct due to the gradual inspection process.  According to DHSS, 371 active licensed or certified facilities require a commencement inspection. At press time, only 21 dispensa- ry, testing, cultivation and infused-product manufacturing sites were approved to op- erate, according to DHSS data. Over three dozen had filed an inspection request and 16 were in progress.  Until marijuana products are verified by a testing facility, they can’t be sold in a dispen- sary, according to past Springfield Business Journal reporting. One local medical marijuana dispensary awaiting state inspection is Ozarx Botanicals I LLC. Co-owner Kim Andrews said Stinson Building Co. is fin- ishing up infill on the company’s 2,500-square-foot shop at 3800 W. Sunshine St. in Springfield Plaza. She said a soft opening is being targeted for late Novem- ber, pending inspection. The store plans to employ up to 15.  “From that point, it will sim- ply be a matter of waiting on product,” she said. “We may have edibles before we have flower available.” Ozarx Botanicals is working with suppli- ers Clovr Cannabis in Kansas City and Flora Farms in Humansville, but Andrews said contract discussions are ongoing with others.  “Everything is kind of in a hurry-up-and- wait mode,” she said.  Lopez also is hopeful product availability for Old Route 66 Wellness will expand in the next month or so, as more cultivation and infused-product manufacturing facilities come online. The manufacturers produce items such as edibles, concentrates and tinc- tures. A product boost will allow the com- pany to open its planned second store at 1421 W. Highway J in Ozark. “Once December hits, there is a real pos- sibility that manufactured products will be available,” he said. Old Route 66 Wellness is working with Carrolton-based cultivator Carroll Coun- ty Cannabis Co. for undisclosed terms. A prior plan to work with Archimedes Medi- cal Holding LLC in Perryville fell through after the companies failed to agree on a price, Lopez said.  Developing plans In Republic, a medical mari- juana dispensary is under con- struction at 7827 W. Farm Road 174 with a targeted December opening. Alex Paulson, co-own- er of Easy Mountain Invest- ments LLC, dba Easy Mountain Cannabis Co., said H.C. Rogers Construction Group LLC is building the 2,500-square-foot shop. “Basically, every way you can imagine ingesting it, we will carry them,” Paulson said of the planned product line, declining to disclose companies they plan to use. “We don’t know who’s going to pro- duce the best stuff yet.” A trio of dispensaries is in progress for a local ownership group, which expects to open the shops dubbed Shango in Decem- ber or early 2021. Two of the shops are in Springfield, with a third in Joplin, and they’ll operate under the Mo Retail Prod- ucts Group Inc. license, said Nancy Price, a co-owner and counsel of record on appeal.  Base Construction & Management LLC is working on all three stores. She said build- out for the shops in Joplin and Springfield, at 3903 S. Campbell Ave., likely will run $450,000, and slightly more for the 1868 S. Glenstone Ave. store. “The real issue, as opposed to construc- tion, is more just availability of product,” she said. “There’s so little out there.” Opening on a limited basis to start is a possibility, Price said. “I just don’t know if we want to do any- thing like that,” she said. “That’s such an inconsistent way to op- erate.” Price said Mo Retail Prod- ucts Group Inc. is appealing the denial by DHSS of several of its applications for dispensary, cultivation and manufacturing facilities. However, she said the case isn’t likely to be determined until next year at the earliest.  It’s among hundreds of ap- peals stacking up against the state, as denied applicants are critical of perceived scoring inconsisten- cies. The scoring process was contracted to a third-party company to avoid conflicts of interest and favoritism. DHSS received over 2,200 applications last year for 348 available licenses, according to past SBJ reporting. DHSS spokesperson Lisa Cox said there originally were 853 appeals filed, but as of Oct. 19, the total was down to 753. “The reduction in cases was primarily due to cases being dismissed or otherwise re- solved in favor of DHSS,” she said via email. Cox declined comment about an ongo- ing lawsuit the state faces from a Sarcoxie company about its denied application for a cultivation facility. The Callicoat family filed the suit near the start of the year. As of press time, the case was set for a two-day trial starting Oct. 29.  Weed: 3 stores plan openings by year’s end Continued from page 3