A medical marijuana dispensary will open in the heart of Jefferson Park by the end of the month, company officials said Wednesday. View Full Caption 45th Ward Office; File photo

JEFFERSON PARK — A medical marijuana dispensary will open in the heart of Jefferson Park by the end of the month, company officials said Wednesday.

Nicholas Vita, chief executive officer of Columbia Care — which had been known as Curative Health — said the dispensary at 4758 N. Milwaukee Ave. will open as soon as state officials give it the green light to begin serving patients, which is expected by the end of August.

The long-vacant building in the heart of the Jefferson Park Business District has been renovated with a gleaming silver facade with security cameras prominently displayed on the building's front.

A date for the dispensary's grand opening will be announced soon, said Julia DePaul, a spokeswoman for the company, which also operates dispensaries in New York, Massachusetts, Arizona, California and Washington, D.C.

The clinic proposed near Milwaukee and Lawrence avenues has been approved by state and city officials.

The clinic — which Ald. John Arena (45th) took no position on when it went before city zoning officials — was criticized by some Jefferson Park residents who said they feared it would increase crime, decrease property values and endanger children using the playgrounds at Jefferson Park Memorial Park and Wilson Park as well as the Jefferson Park library.

The dispensary is separated from Arena's 45th Ward office by one storefront. The alderman has vowed to keep a close eye on its operations.

Others, however, said the dispensary would provide a valuable service that would help people suffering from serious illnesses such as cancer and glaucoma who have a doctor's prescription for marijuana and be registered in the state-administered program.

Chicago has three open medical marijuana dispensaries in Logan Square, Uptown and Garfield Ridge. The Columbia Care dispensary in Jefferson Park will be the first to open on the Far Northwest Side, and the fourth in the city.

Another medical marijuana dispensary has the permission of state and city officials to open near Milwaukee and Devon avenues.

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