Marlisa Meah, owner of the Evergreen Wellness medical marijuana dispensary in Detroit, has a lot on her plate these days.

She’s one of the first marijuana business owners in Detroit and has nearly a year of business in the new industry under her belt. So she has to ensure that renewing her medical license goes smoothly and prepare for the emerging recreational market that is right around the corner.

She was one of about 100 people attending a Marijuana Regulatory Agency meeting in Detroit on Thursday to learn how to apply for one of the recreational marijuana licenses that will open the market later this year to anyone 21 and older, beyond the nearly 300,000 people who have medical marijuana cards.

“I want to do recreational and probably also in the grow part because those two go hand in hand,” the Detroit resident said.

More:Ex-Red Wing Darren McCarty joins marijuana company, says pot saved his life

More:Short's Brewing teams up with marijuana company to make edibles, beverages

Meah will have a leg up because medical marijuana business license holders will have the first crack at licenses for most of the license categories in the recreational market for at least one year. Through mid-August, 296 medical marijuana licenses have been awarded by the state: 121 growers; 15 processors; 144 dispensaries; 10 secure transporters and 6 testing facilities.

“For people like myself, who already have a state license, it will be an easier process for recreational,” she said. “But it took us almost a year to get that medical marijuana license.”

The state will begin taking applications for the recreational marijuana licenses on Nov. 1 and those who already have a medical license will get fast-tracked because they’ve already gone through background checks and have an up-and-running business.

If the cities where they’re operating have given the green light for recreational licenses, they could be up and running by the end of November.

The cost of a license will go down for both medical and recreational marijuana businesses. When the state set the cost of recreational licenses, which range from $1,000 to $40,000, they lowered the medical marijuana license fees to match. The $6,000 application fee will still apply to all license categories in both the medical and recreational sides

There are six new categories of licenses for the recreational market that won’t require a potential business owner to already have a medical marijuana license:

Class A grower: While there is already a Class A grower category in the medical market, this recreational license is slightly different. It will allow the small grower — one growing up to 100 plants — to get into the market for a $4,000 license fee, allowing the caregivers who have been supplying medical marijuana to patients to enter the market more easily. This marijuana — seeds, small and large mature plants — can be sold to retail pot shops and processors processers, but owners can apply for only one grow license.

Marijuana microbusiness: This license will allow the owner to grow up to 150 plants, process the marijuana and sell it to individuals 21 and older. The owner must be a Michigan resident and can’t hold an interest in any other marijuana business. The licensing fee is $8,000.

Designated consumption establishment: This license will allow people to open social clubs where people can use marijuana in any form. Generally, these clubs can’t serve food or alcohol or allow anyone under 21 into the business. The licensing fee is $1,000.

Marijuana event organizer: This license will allow a person to put on temporary marijuana events, such as the periodic Cannabis Cup competitions, where different forms of marijuana compete for prizes, or cannabis conferences. The license fee is $1,000.

Temporary marijuana event: These license holders also must have an event organizer license and they can put on events where the sale and consumption of marijuana products is allowed for one day or up to one week. The cost of a license is $500 for each day of the event. And if marijuana is sold at the event, an additional $500 per-day fee for the event organizer as well as a $500 fee for each person authorized to sell marijuana products at the event will apply.

Marijuana testing facility: While there is already a category for testing for medical marijuana, new applicants won’t need a medical license to be approved to test recreational marijuana. The license fee is $25,000.

The existing categories for medical marijuana licenses remain mostly the same for the recreational market: two classes of growers, processors, testing facilities, retail stores and secure transporters. A new category — excess marijuana grower — has been added to accommodate people who want to stack the large grow licenses in order to become a mega-grower of both medical and recreational marijuana.

The fees for those categories are: $8,000 for a Class B grower of up to 500 plants; $40,000 each for a Class C grower of up to 2,000 plants and an excess marijuana grower of up to 2,000 plants per license for an owner who wants to become a mega grower of both medical and recreational pot; $40,000 for a processor, and $25,000 each for a secure transport and retail shop license.

The recreational market became possible when voters approved a ballot proposal in November to legalize marijuana for adult recreational use for anyone 21 or older. The ballot proposal also allows people to grow up to 12 plants in their home for personal use.

Contact Kathleen Gray: 313-223-4430, kgray99@freepress.com or on Twitter @michpoligal