Grand opening set for St. George medical cannabis pharmacy

ST. GEORGE — A new medicinal marijuana pharmacy has opened its doors in St. George and will be hosting a grand opening this Saturday.

Dre Trobradovic, national director of sales for Justice Cannabis, speaks about the Bloc Pharmacy’s pending grand opening in St. George, Utah, June 11, 2021 | Photo by Mori Kessler, St. George News

Bloc Pharmacy, located at 1624 S. Convention Center Drive in St. George, next door to Jack in the Box, will be hosting its grand opening from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday and will kick it off with a with a ribbon cutting event.

“We want to celebrate being one of the first medical cannabis pharmacies in the area, and we invite everybody to come,” said Dre Trobradovic, national director of retail for Justice Cannabis Co., BLOC’s parent company.

As a part of the grand opening, Trobradovic said vendor booths we be on hand to share information on what they have to offer for qualifying medical marijuana patients, while offering education to the public in general about what they do.

“We want to do everything in our power to make sure we are well-received and welcomed and at the end of the day, educate people about the great service we are providing,” Trobradovic said.

As a part of the grand opening, individuals 21 and over will be able to tour the sales floor after checking in with security. As per Bloc’s current policy, individuals entering the pharmacy will be required to wear a face mask.

Inside the Bloc medical cannabis pharmacy in St. George, Utah, June 11, 2021 | Photo by Mori Kessler, St. George News

Various food trucks will also be on-site during the grand opening starting at 11 a.m.

Bloc Pharmacy is one of 14 highly regulated, specialized cannabis pharmacies in the state that were approved in the wake of the Utah Legislature’s legalizing medical marijuana in late 2018. While state lawmakers have been tweaking bits and pieces of those medical-related marijuana laws since, these laws paved the way for medicinal cannabis to be grown, distributed and sold in Utah. Recreational marijuana use remains illegal in the state.

“They didn’t think they’d live to see the day there’s a cannabis pharmacy in St. George,” Trobradovic said, referring to the primarily locally-hired staff at Bloc.

Patients who patronize the cannabis pharmacy will be assisted by pharmacy agents, she said, and two state licensed pharmacists will be on-site to consult with patients before they make a purchase.

The Bloc medical cannabis pharmacy in St. George, Utah, June 11, 2021 | Photo by St. George News

Before someone is able to buy medicinal cannabis from the pharmacy, however, they must have a state-issued card showing they are approved to do so. Questions about getting a card and other medical marijuana-related issues can be found on a FAQ document published by the Utah Department of Health.

Medical marijuana sold to patients through the pharmacy come in the form of the cannabis flower, edibles, tinctures, tropical cremes, concentrates and vape cartridges. Smoking marijuana, even for medical purposes, remains illegal under state law.

Many of the products are displayed under glass-covered tables on the pharmacy’s sales floor.

Like other cannabis pharmacies in the state, Bloc accepts cash-only for sales due to major credit card companies, banks and online services like Paypal hesitant to be a part of transactions involving a substance that is still listed as illegal by the federal government. Because of this, Bloc has an ATM located inside the building for customer use.

Inside the Bloc medical cannabis pharmacy in St. George, Utah, June 11, 2021 | Photo by Mori Kessler, St. George News

“I’m proud of what we’ve done here, proud of the local team,” Trobradovic said. “The city of St. George has been so welcoming and so supportive throughout this process, and we’re really excited to be here.”

Justice Cannabis Co., the company behind Bloc Pharmacy, has an additional location in West Jordan and holds marijuana-related licenses in Pennsylvania, California, Illinois, New Jersey, Missouri, Michigan and Massachusetts. The company was formed in 2014 by civil rights attorneys in Illinois, according to the company’s website.

“The concept was simple: Cannabis made good, that does good, to make you feel good,” the website states.

Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2021, all rights reserved.

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