Owosso's first recreational marijuana retailer prepares for crowd at grand opening Tuesday

OWOSSO — The first recreational pot shop in Owosso is preparing for crowds at its grand opening Tuesday.

Lume will open the recreational side of its business at 116 N. Washington, where it already operates a medical marijuana dispensary. The store will be open from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Tuesday. 

Following the statewide legalization of recreational marijuana in 2018, Owosso City Council approved a moratorium on recreational marijuana businesses.

That moratorium lifted Monday when the city began accepting applications from adult-use businesses. Local officials gave approval that same day to Lume, which has cleared licensing hurdles at the state level. 

"The city’s just going to be really busy for a few days," said Tanya Buckelew, office manager for Owosso's Building Department. "Lume’s put a lot of time and investment into the city, and I think it will bring a lot of business."

More: Recreational pot shops are one step closer to opening in Lansing 

Ultimately, Owosso could license as many as four recreational retailers. Officials anticipate those businesses will open at locations that already sell medical marijuana.

Under state law, medical marijuana dispensaries are allowed to provide cannabis to children and adults who have state-issued medical marijuana cards.

Recreational marijuana, also know as adult-use marijuana, is available to anyone 21 and older.

Lume will celebrate its Owosso opening with free gifts bags for its first 100 adult-use customers. Overflow customers may wait inside the Century 21 building at at 114 N. Washington to enjoy light refreshments from Foster Coffee and free doughnuts and cookies from Bea’s Bakery.

Complimentary shuttle service will be available throughout the day from the Comstock Street parking lot south of Roma’s restaurant between Park and Saginaw streets.

Lume operates other recreational retailers in Evart and Honor. The company is planning to open more stores later this year in Big Rapids, Petoskey, Negaunee, Walled Lake and Mackinaw City, according to a news release. 

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“Our goal is to be the best operator and the most trusted source on all things cannabis in the state, and that starts with ensuring every customer has an amazing experience every time they enter a Lume store,” Doug Hellyar, the company's president and COO, said in a statement. “Our team of Luminaries has been trained to make it easy for every customer to find the high quality Lume products that meets their needs – no matter their experience with cannabis.”

Lume's products include cannabis flowers, pre-rolls, edibles and concentrates.

Michigan's first legal recreational marijuana stores opened in December in Ann Arbor. 

Depending on the speed of state regulators, recreational pot shops could come to Lansing in coming days. The city clerk granted conditional approval last week to 11 retailers seeking to sell recreational marijuana in Lansing. 

Eventually, Lansing will also allow for the opening of social clubs, businesses where adults can gather to use marijuana, along with facilities called microbusinesses. A microbusiness, similar to a microbrewery for beer, is a businesses licensed to grow, process and sell a limited amount of cannabis at a single location.

Unlike Lansing, Owosso prohibits both microbusinesses and social clubs within city limits, Buckelew said.

Contact Sarah Lehr at (517) 377-1056 or slehr@lsj.com. Follow her on Twitter @SarahGLehr.