NuEra Cannabis breaks ground on marijuana dispensary in DeKalb

DeKALB – NuEra Cannabis, the second of two marijuana dispensaries slated for DeKalb, is entering a new era in its hopes of setting up shop in town in early 2024.

On Monday, project leaders joined city staff for a groundbreaking ceremony to celebrate the start of work that will commence on the building at 818 W. Lincoln Highway. DeKalb City Manager Bill Nicklas and city planner Dan Olson were present.

The 4,834 square-feet space, now vacant, used to be home to the former Book World in The Junction Shopping Center.

Plans for the soon-to-be marijuana dispensary have been a long time in the making, officials said.

“We are absolutely delighted,” NuEra Cannabis chief operating officer Laura Jaramillo Bernal said. “We really thought that we would’ve been up and running years ago, but the cannabis licensing process has been much slower than everybody expected. Also, the COVID-19 pandemic slowed everything a lot more than everyone expected. So, it’s taken everything a little while, but both the city and our landlord have been incredibly supportive and incredibly patient. We are so excited to finally be breaking ground today and hopefully opening up our doors to the public in quarter one next year.”

NuEra Cannabis already has other dispensaries in Illinois, including in Aurora, East Peoria, Chicago Champaign, Urbana and Pekin, according to its website.

“People are getting products that might have heavy metals, solvents and pesticides that aren’t part of what … we like to call this new era of cannabis for us. This new era of safe, legal, trustworthy, educational, accessible welcoming cannabis. If that means more dispensaries, I’m excited to see that.”

—  Laura Jaramillo Bernal

Jaramillo Bernal said the company’s decision to choose DeKalb for a dispensary was simple.

“The family that started and runs NuEra has been in the Western Suburbs for a very long time,” she said. “They’ve been part of this community as developers, as builders. We care about this part of the state. We love DeKalb. We think it’s going to be a great market for cannabis.”

Jaramillo Bernal said that while NuEra Cannabis won’t be able to sell medicinal cannabis with the medical lower taxes to patrons, they will be able to give people assistance in other ways.

“We host [classes] anything, from infused cocktail making classes to learning how to use devices, to using cannabis to cope with cancer treatment,” she said. “We host all sorts of events and classes in all of our locations. We try to be very active in the community. So, we participate in anything, from farmers markets to music festivals to hosting classes. We intend to do the same very much in this community.”

By early 2024, NuEra Cannabis will make for the second of two dispensaries operating in town after what is the expected fall opening of Excelleaf, 305 E. Locust St. Excelleaf is expected to open later this month.

Jaramillo Bernal said she doesn’t necessarily see Excelleaf as competition.

“I’m excited to see another dispensary in DeKalb as opposed to seeing the growth of the illicit market, for example, where people are getting products that are not tested,” she said. “People are getting products that might have heavy metals, solvents and pesticides that aren’t part of what … we like to call this new era of cannabis for us. This new era of safe, legal, trustworthy, educational, accessible welcoming cannabis. If that means more dispensaries, I’m excited to see that.”

While NuEra Cannabis has approval from the city, the marijuana dispensary is still in need of final clearance from the state to open for business, Jaramillo Bernal said.

“The state doesn’t issue approval until the full buildout has been finished, all the paperwork is done and they do an inspection,” she said. “We won’t have final approval from the state until that’s done.”

NuEra Cannabis is expected to be operational by the first quarter of 2024.