Medical Marijuana Dispensary Application Open in Highland Park

A potential candidate to open the first medical marijuana dispensary in Highland Park has applied for a business license in a commercial area along Skokie Valley Road.

While the exact location has not been stated publicly, Brad Zerman - owner of Future Transactions Holdings, LLC, which has applied for three licenses in the Chicagoland area - said he does not mind waiting for a license and expects Gov. Bruce Rauner to “give it his attention” and review all the work that’s been submitted from the state’s several hundred applicants.

“We are hopeful for 60-90 days,” said Zerman, who is the only applicant in Highland Park - but one of five in Lake County’s District 27, of which three licenses are available. “We are really far ahead of plans, even if Gov. Rauner wants to take his time, our paperwork is in good order.”

Highland Park recently amended zoning to include commercial districts as potential sites for dispensaries. Zerman said he was pleased to see the city’s Mayor and City Council “understand the issues” and that patients are in need of a cannabis dispensary locally.

Rankings released earlier this week by the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation under the Gov. Patrick Quinn administration show Future Transactions Holdings, LLC as the fourth best out of the five, but Zerman pointed out in an email to media that he is “only five points away from the third highest score.”

Zerman’s company also has applications open in Evanston and Oak Park. His Evanston application finished second among 15 competitors for a single District 34 license for all of Niles Township, which includes Evanston, Skokie, Lincolnwood, most of Morton Grove and half of Niles. He is one of three applicants in Oak Park and the highest ranked.

“We’re prepared to move forward with all three,” Zerman said if awarded all, expressing confidence his company could even be awarded the Evanston license despite 14 other applicants seeking the lone location, on Maple Ave.

“We are a real contender in Evanston given the potential tax issues associated with the first ranked applicant,” Zerman said, adding that two out of three of the top ranked Lake County applicants have brought with them similar concerns.

If awarded one of the Lake County licenses and with plans to move forward in Highland Park, the new business would simply be called “District 27,” Zerman said, with an idea to propose to the state of Illinois to possibly include a medical logo on the front of the business. However, since he found out this is not allowed in Highland Park, he “will remove that from the store signage,” but keep plans to include it at potential locations in Oak Park and Evanston.

Zerman, a Chicago businessman, also owns Sky Processing, an ATM business with machines throughout the United States and Puerto Rico.

“We are in position to jump right into the cannabis industry,” Zerman said. “We have experience managing up to 3,000 ATMs - an industry that is constantly changing with a need for us to always evaluate where we are. We contract with banks and have experience handling the enormous amount of requirements needed there.”