Historic medical marijuana dispensary opens in Cherokee, NC, 1st in the state

Will Hofmann, Asheville Citizen Times
Sat, April 20, 2024 


CHEROKEE - Hundreds of whooping and hollering medical marijuana card-holders filtered into the Great Smoky Cannabis Co. here at 10 a.m. April 20, for the historic opening of the 10,000-square-foot dispensary selling products such as cannabis tinctures, gummies and other marijuana products.

The opening of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians' dispensary marks the first time marijuana can legally be purchased in North Carolina. The grand opening was held on 4/20 — also known as the "national cannabis holiday."

A road sign heading west on U.S. 19 into Cherokee, just before the dispensary, read: "420. Expect delays."

Myrtle Driver prepares to cut the ribbon during the Eastern Band of Cherokee Great Smoky Cannabis Co. grand opening. April 20, 2024.

District Attorney Ashley Hornsby Welch, the top prosecutor for the counties surrounding tribal land, said her office will continue to enforce North Carolina law, which prohibits the cultivation, distribution and possession of marijuana.

While the Citizen Times was reporting from Cherokee for about five hours on April 20, a reporter did not witness the presence of any law enforcement.

The EBCI land — known as the Qualla Boundary — is a sovereign nation that has its own elections, laws, government and institutions that are self-governed and autonomous. It lies primarily in the Western North Carolina mountain counties of Swain and Jackson, with smaller parts in Cherokee, Graham and Haywood.

The Eastern Band is one of three federally recognized sovereign nations that were once part of the larger Cherokee Tribe prior to the Trail of Tears forced removal from their land in Western North Carolina, according to the EBCI website. The other two, Cherokee Nation and the United Kituwah Band, are in Oklahoma.

The opening of dispensary has not been without setbacks and is only part of the launch of the EBCI's cannabis industry.

After the EBCI passed a referendum on medical marijuana in 2021, they launched Qualla Enterprises, which eventually produced "the largest cannabis farm in the history of the United States," said Forrest Parker, general manager for Qualla Enterprises, an EBCI company that manages the dispensary.

During that time, however, a transportation plan had not been created for the property and the Eastern Band had reportedly invested over $30 million and not sold any of their product, as previously reported by the Citizen Times. The opening offers a new opportunity for revenue for the tribe.

More: NC's 1st marijuana dispensary will open on 4/20 in Cherokee: What to know
'Historic moment'

Parker set expectations high for the opening, saying it was a "historic moment."

The event was attended by hundreds, many of whom were waiting outside of the dispensary during the opening ceremony.

"This project will change the trajectory of their lives forever. It will be a conduit to generations of social, economic, and spiritual growth, unlike anything that's ever been witnessed," Parker said during the grand opening ceremony.

Forrest Parker speaks during the grand opening ceremony of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians' Great Smoky Cannabis Co. dispensary in Cherokee, North Carolina. April 20, 2024.

Renowned tribal translator and Beloved Woman Myrtle Driver spoke during the opening ceremony, offering a prayer and noting that she had been given the honor of naming and translating the different strains of cannabis into Cherokee.

While she was doing research to name the strains, she said she began to find older medicinal uses that were attributed to the drug.

Attendees nod their head as Myrtle Driver says a prayer during the grand opening ceremony of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians' Great Smoky Cannabis Co. dispensary in Cherokee, North Carolina. April 20, 2024.

"As far as I know, Qualla Enterprises is the only tribal entity that is going to be incorporating the Cherokee language," Driver said.

Driver also briefly mentioned Bob Marley, whom she said she had met in New York, and sang his song "Three Little Birds" with the crowd.

Afterward, in a transaction that was made half in English and half in Cherokee, Driver was the first to purchase medical marijuana in North Carolina.

A cannabis plant grow room in the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians' Great Smoky Cannabis Co. dispensary in Cherokee, North Carolina. April 20, 2024.
Could the dispensary go recreational?

Only those with an EBCI medical cannabis patient card or an out-of-state approved medical marijuana card will be eligible to purchase at the dispensary and the drug is still illegal in state and federally.

This did keep away customers from traveling hours in the early morning to attend the April 20 opening.

Several customers, who wished not to be identified, noted Huntington's disease, movement disorders and arthritis as medical conditions in which the drug may be able to help. Card holders came from as far away as Surry County, about a three-and-a-half-hour drive northeast of Cherokee.

While the Great Smoky Cannabis Co. dispensary only sells medical marijuana, that could soon change.

Medical marijuana purchasers wait as the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians' Great Smoky Cannabis Co. dispensary opens.

After a September referendum indicated broad support for recreational marijuana, Great Smoky Cannabis Co. is expected to offer recreational marijuana after Tribal Council passes a resolution changing legal language regarding the use of the drug.

The lead up to the opening has been busy for the employees of the dispensary, as Cade Husky, an employee in the edibles department of the dispensary, said he and his coworkers clocked 155-160 hours over two weeks to get the product across the line.

Workers in the edible department at the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians Great Smoky Cannabis Co. dispensary in Cherokee, North Carolina. April 20, 2024.

"I've been real stressed the last three weeks, but now that we are here — I'm excited," Husky said.

The legalization of recreational marijuana might allow the dispensary to hire nearly 350 employees, as previously reported by the Citizen Times. Husky said they plan to offer more product options once the recreational resolution is passed.

More: As Cherokee plan NC's 1st legal pot sales, lawmakers erect barriers: question casino money

More: Cherokee tribal police face no criminal charges in shooting of unarmed man in his home

Will Hofmann is the Growth and Development Reporter for the Asheville Citizen Times, part of the USA Today Network. Got a tip? Email him at WHofmann@citizentimes.com. Please help support this type of journalism with a subscription to the Citizen Times.

This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Historic Cherokee medical marijuana dispensary opens in NC

NC Cherokee may soon sell marijuana to any adults who want it, tribal official says

Joe Marusak
Sat, April 20, 2024 

The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians in western North Carolina could soon expand sales at its new medical cannabis superstore to all adults, a tribal council member said at a recent council work session.

Great Smoky Cannabis Company opened Saturday as the only dispensary in the state where such marijuana sales are legal. Sales are limited to those with a medical cannabis card issued by the tribe’s Cannabis Control Board or a similar board out of state.

At a Cherokee tribal council work session Monday, April 15, 2024, council member Boyd Owle, far right, announces that the tribe’s adult-use cannabis ordinance should be finished and voted on in June. That would open the tribe’s medical cannabis dispensary to recreational-use adult buyers.

The dispensary is in the tribe’s massive former bingo hall at U.S. 19 and Bingo Loop Road, near Harrah’s Cherokee Casino Resort, 46 miles west of Asheville in the Great Smoky Mountains.

“Happy 4.20 & Welcome to our Grand Opening!” reads the message on the dispensary website.

The store opened with at least 34,000 “fully tested, certified products,” said Forrest Parker, general manager of Qualla Enterprises, the Cherokee cannabis subsidiary.

Products on display at the Great Smoky Cannabis Company on Wednesday, September 6, 2023 during an open house.

Products include flower, vape items, edibles and topicals, officials said.

At the dispensary Saturday morning, Myrtle Driver Johnson, Beloved Woman of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, made the first legal purchase of cannabis in North Carolina, the Cherokee One Feather tribal newspaper reported.

“It is a great day for the Cherokee people today,” Johnson said

Recreational sales targeted for June, official says

Also Saturday, State Rep. Zach Hawkins, D-Durham, said he’s filing legislation “to further support the (marijuana) decriminalizing and legalization movement.” Marijuana remains illegal in North Carolina and federally.

April 20 is recognized by marijuana users and producers as the national cannabis holiday.

In a historic vote on Sept. 7, tribal members by 70% approved adult use of marijuana on tribal land. The tribe on the 57,000-acre Qualla Boundary had already approved the use and controlled sale of medical cannabis.

Adult or recreational use remains illegal on the Qualla Boundary until the tribal council finishes crafting and then approves an adult use ordinance.

That could happen in June, council member Boyd Owle said at the end of a council work session Monday called to continue work on the ordinance.

Boyd Owle, Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians tribal council member

Owle urged patience to people wondering why it’s taking so long since the September vote to legalize adult use.

“It’s going to take some time,” he said. “Let’s get it right before we put it out there. But we’re on the right track. I’d like to see it on the agenda come June and approve recreational.”

Owle is serving his third-straight term as tribal council representative for the Birdtown and 3200 Acre Tract communities.

No council member objected to Owle’s timetable before the meeting adjourned. Neither did any officials with Qualla Enterprises LLC in the audience. More work sessions will be held to complete the ordinance, Owle said.

“Just be patient so we can work on this and get it going and make sure it’s correct,” Owle said, adding that his message was to the general public that overwhelming approved adult-use sales.

“How proud that I am”

Parker called the dispensary opening the culmination of “a big week.”

“Thank you to y’all,” he told the tribal council Monday. “It’s a monumental, historic week for our tribe, and I appreciate your working so hard. The people at Qualla, we appreciate it.”

“I just want to tell the community how proud that I am of this crew of people,” Parker said. “And I want them to know we’re working every day to make sure we do this in the most efficient way, and in a way that you guys and the community can be proud of what we’re doing.”
Potential revenues

The dispensary could generate nearly $206 million in gross sales revenues in its first year if limited to medical patients, compared with $385 million if product is available to all adult users, The Charlotte Observer previously reported.

The figures were released by Qualla Enterprises before last year’s adult-use referendum. Cannabis industry consultant HedgeRow Analysis developed the estimates for Qualla Enterprises.

In its fifth year, the dispensary could generate a respective $578 million and $843 million in gross sales revenues, according to the HedgeRow Analysis estimates.

News & Observer Staff Writer Dawn Baumgartner Vaughan contributed.