SITKA — A second marijuana retailer has opened for business in the southeast Alaska city of Sitka.
The Northern Lights Indoor Gardens began selling its products on Feb. 16. The business is located in the same strip mall as the city’s first marijuana business, Weed Dudes, The Sitka Sentinel reported Tuesday.
Northern Lights owner Micah Miller said he’s been selling about a pound of pot each day and likely won’t have enough to keep up with demand before his next crop is ready in late March.
He expects sales to pick up in March when commercial fishermen come into town for herring season.
“My doors will be closed at some moment for a minute,” Miller said. “Really, I wish we had twice the operation.”
Miller said he wants to add a smoke lounge for customers if the Alaska Marijuana Control Board allows on-site consumption in the future. The board voted down a proposal on Feb. 2 that would have permitted marijuana use in stores.
“We’d like to have them smoke here so they’re not doing it on the streets,” Miller said, “especially in the Totem Park area. “We don’t want our containers ending up there.”
With the business’ success so far, Miller said he hopes to start selling a variety of marijuana products, such as edibles and hash.
Northern Lights and Weed Dudes could soon be joined by a third marijuana cultivation operation expected to come into the Sitka market within the next couple of weeks.
“We’re getting ready to harvest and working on building our dispensary,” Green Leaf owner Aaron Bean said.
His product will be sold at Weed Dudes.
