SCOTTSDALE, AZ — In a quiet area just east of Camelback and 3rd avenue, Randy Smith the founder of Sunday Goods, a medical marijuana business, is looking to open its third Valley dispensary.
On Tuesday night, the business put it's plans on hold, hoping to come back to the idea at a later date.
In 2016, the Arizona Department of Health and Services identified areas across the state with high numbers of patients but a low number of dispensaries to serve them.
South Scottsdale is among the most underserved areas in the state for patients holding medical marijuana cards.
"It's literally about helping patients that need to get their medicine and this isn't about anything other than that," Smith says.
Unlike most dispensaries, which are hidden away in business parks, the Scottsdale location is in Old Town, among the salons, bars, businesses and private schools which make up the real estate here.
"We teach coding to several hundred kids a month here at CodaKid," says David Dodge.
Dodge is among a number of prospective neighbors who don't want the dispensary near their businesses. "I'm worried about this corner being a center for smoking after purchase," he says.
"I don't want it around our kids. We have six, seven, eight-year-old children who are here at the academy."
Smith says the concern is unwarranted. Sunday Goods was awarded a state license three years ago. Scottsdale's City Planning Commission approved the zoning request.
