While Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s, or a new yoga studio may be the best businesses to revitalize an up-and-coming neighborhood now, Forbes contributor and third generation real estate expert Amy Dobson says cannabis companies could potentially be the next disrupter. With so many states passing laws favorable to recreational marijuana, select cities, such as Los Angeles, have developers looking to fill their buildings with cannabis-related tenants.
Downtown Los Angeles could be the first case study to see this phenomenon in action. Next month, a seven-story building in the heart of Los Angeles' Jewelry District will open up, filled with tenants who all have cannabis somewhere in their job description. The 67,000-square-foot Green Street Building (the name is in reference to its anchor tenant, the Green St. Agency, which works solely with clients in the marijuana industry) will house everything from co-working spaces to an art gallery, dispensary, restaurant, law firm, luxury spa and lounge. Real estate investment company Bow West Capital purchased the property last year for a reported $14 million. Once open it will be the largest real estate space dedicated to cannabis in the U.S.
"The buildings in [the Jewelry District] have not received the proper upkeep, allowing for low sale prices of the buildings but also requiring full renovations," said Matthew Rosenberg, CEO and Founder of M-Rad, Inc, the design team behind the project. "With the prosperity and funding in the cannabis industry on the rise, this is a perfect combination for this exciting new industry to make this area their home, with Green St. being the catalyst."
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