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Competition Fierce To Grow, Distribute Medical Marijuana In Illinois

Ryan Pumroy
/
WNIJ

Entrepreneurs looking to get in on the business side of Illinois' new medical marijuana program are facing fierce competition.  The state has come out with numbers showing just how much.  

 
Illinois' Medical Cannabis Program is just that. A pilot.  As in, not permanent. And it's designed to strictly limit who will be eligible to buy, and use, marijuana as medicine. 
 
It's already proving to be a burgeoning business. Illinois has strict limits that will prevent almost everyone who wants to get into the marijuana growing and distributing business from getting in on the program. 
159 applications were submitted by those interested in growing cannabis; of those, spokeswoman Melaney Arnold says Illinois will award 21 licenses. Illinois got 214 applications for dispensaries; only 60 will win.
 
Arnold says it'll be up to two panels, made of experts in policy, legal issues and horticulture, to decide.
 

"Some of the things the applications will be scored on include a security plan, a business and operations plan, looking at record keeping, and inventory, a financial plan, as well as having some bonus categories."

 
 
Arnold says selections should be made before year's end. Then the state will hold a second application period for districts where no qualified applications were submitted. 

Cultivation Center Applications

The Illinois Department of Agriculture releasedthe following list of applications for medical marijuana cultivation centers by district. Each district, based on state police zones, will receive one license, except for two: Cook County will be allowed to award two licenses and there is no license in District 15. That's the Illinois Tollway. 

Districts  #Applications   Counties

District 1 –     13                     Carroll,Lee, Ogle,Whiteside 

District 2 –     9                      DeKalb,DuPage,Kane, Lake,McHenry              

District 3 –     9                      Cook County                                                         

District 4 -                              Cook County                                                      

District 5 -     14                     Grundy, Kendall, Will                                          

District 6 -     10                     DeWitt, Livingston, McLean       

District 7 -      6                      Henry, Knox, Mercer, Rock Island                   

District 8 -      7                      Marshall, Peoria, Stark, Tazewell, Wood

District 9 -      8                      Cass, Christian, Logan, Mason, Menard, Morgan, Sangamon    

District 10 –  11      Champaign,Coles, Douglas, Edgar, Macon, Moultrie, Piatt, Shelby, Vermilion    

District 11 -      9                     Bond, Clinton, Madison, Monroe, St. Clair     

District 12 -      3                    Clark, Clay, Crawford, Cumberland, Effingham, Fayette, Jasper,                                                                               Lawrence, Marion, Richland.          

District 13-      8                     Franklin, Jackson, Jefferson, Perry, Randolph, Washington, Williamson                                

District 14 -     3                     Fulton, Hancock, Henderson, McDonough, Warren                                                  

District 15 -      0                    Downers Grove - Tollway                                                                                                 

District 16 -      7                    Boone, Jo Daviess, Stephenson, Winnebago     

District 17 -     13                   Bureau, LaSalle, Putnam                                      

District 18 -      7                   Calhoun, Greene, Jersey, Macoupin, Montgomery      

District 19 -      3                   Edwards, Gallatin, Hamilton, Saline, Wabash, Wayne, White                               

District 20 -      6                  Adams, Brown, Pike, Schuyler, Scott                     

District 21 -      5                   Ford, Iroquois, Kankakee                                        

District 22 -      7                   Alexander, Hardin, Johnson, Massac, Pope, Pulaski, Union                                       

Dispensary Applications

The state plans to award up to 60 dispensary licenses. Some districts will get more than one license.  According to Melaney Arnold, media contact for the medical cannabis program, the districts listed below are based on population.

"In southern and central Illinois, many of the districts are the same as the Illinois State Police districts. In the northern part of the state where the population is greater, the districts are more like zone – individual counties or townships," said Arnold.

Districts  #Applications  Counties  

District 1 – 4                         Carroll, Ogle, Whiteside, Lee                                                  

District 6 -   4                        Livingston, McLean, DeWitt                                                   

District 7 – 1                          Rock Island, Mercer, Knox, Henry                   

District 8 -  7                         Marshall, Peoria, Stark, Tazewell, Woodford                      

District 9 – 4                         Cass, Christian, Logan, Mason, Menard, Morgan, Sangamon      

District 10 – 8                       Champaign, Coles, Douglas, Edgar, Macon, Moultrie, Piatt, Shelby, Vermilion          

District 11 – 11                       Bond, Clinton, Madison, Monroe, St. Clair                        

District 12 -  1 Clark, Crawford, Cumberland,Effingham,Fayette, Jasper, Lawrence, Marion, Richland 

District 13 – 2                        Franklin, Jackson, Jefferson, Perry, Randolph, Washington, Williamson

District 14 – 1                        Fulton, Hancock, Henderson, McDonough, Warren          

District 16 – 6                        Boone, Jo Daviess, Stephenson, Winnebago                        

District 17 – 4                         Bureau, LaSalle, Putnam  

District 18 -  1                         Calhoun, Greene, Jersey, Macoupin, Montgomery       

District 19 -   1                        Edwards, Gallatin, Hamilton, Saline, Wabash, Wayne, White       

District 20 -  2                        Adams, Brown, Pike, Schuyler, Scott                                      

District 21 -   0                        Ford, Iroquois, Kankakee 

District 22 -  1                          Alexander, Hardin, Johnson, Massac, Pope, Pulaski, Union      

District 23 -  0                         DeKalb County 

District 24 – 23                       DuPage County  

District 25 -  3                         Grundy and Kendall    

District 26 – 14                       Kane County  

District 27 -  5                         Lake County 

District 28 -  2                         McHenry County                                                                            

District 29 -  10                       Will County                                      

District 30 -  3                         Barrington, Hanover, Palatine townships                                  

District 31 -  12                        Elk Grove and Schaumburg townships                                    

District 32 -  6                         Maine and Wheeling townships                                                

District 33 -   2                        New Trier and Northfield townships                                            

District 34 -   15                      Evanston and Niles townships                                                      

District 35 -  12                       Leyden, Norwood Park, Proviso townships                                

District 36 -   3                       Berwyn, Cicero, Oak Park, River Forest, Riverside townships  

District 37 -   4                       Lemon, Lyons, Palos townships                                                      

District 38 -   5                       Calumet, Stickney, Worth townships                                              

District 39 -   3                       Bremen, Orland, Rich townships                                                  

District 40 -   7                       Bloom and Thornton townships                                                     

District 41 -    6                       Jefferson Township                                                                          

District 42 -   2                        Hyde Park Township                                                                          

District 43 -   2                        Lake Township                                                                                    

District 44 -   3                        Lakeview Township                                                                  

District 45 -    3                       North Township                   

District 46 -    1                       Rogers Park Township                                                                        

District 47 -    0                       South Township                                                                                    

District 48 -   10                      West Township                                                                                     

(This post was updated at 5:00PM, October 2, 2014.)

Susan is an award-winning reporter/writer at her favorite radio station. She's also WNIJ's Perspectives editor, Under Rocks contributor, and local host of All Things Considered.
Amanda Vinicky moved to Chicago Tonight on WTTW-TV PBS in 2017.
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