Look for an open-sided, six-seat, electric touring car making its way along Bend streets starting in September.
It will mark the advent of marijuana tourism, the next phase in a town already a destination for skiers, beer drinkers and bicyclists.
By offering this type of tour, were demystifying cannabis, said John Flannery, a partner in The Bend Tour Co. Were helping take away the stigma.
Tourism geared to marijuana is not new in Washington and Colorado, states that preceded Oregon in legalizing recreational marijuana for adults. Portland has its own pot tour. But the Bend Tour Co. plan represents the first of its kind in Bend, Flannery said. He sees tourism as a means to entertain people while educating them about marijuana and Oregon law surrounding it.
Its a great tour of town but with a different set of discussion points, Flannery said. For a lot of people, its the icing on the cake.
Marijuana is taking its place among businesses that play on Bends popularity as a destination along with kayak rentals, flyfishing outfitters and brewpubs, said dispensary owners. They reported a jump in sales starting in June, an increase tied to the availability of edible products infused with the psychoactive ingredient in marijuana, but also to the tide of visitors during the first summer of legalized marijuana in Oregon. The Visit Bend website in spring added a drop-down menu that lists the 17 marijuana dispensaries in the city. Visit Bend, the agency that contracts with Bend to market the city as a destination, takes a neutral stance on marijuana, its chief executive said.
The way we see it, now that its legal in Oregon, we list them just like wed list a grocery store or a brewery, said Kevney Dugan, president and CEO of Visit Bend. If youre legally operating under the laws of the state, we cant dictate who can or cant be part of the (tourism) industry. Grocery stores, hair-cutting salons, mountain-bike rentals all have that listing. Tourists want that resource.
Flannerys tours will provide clients an opportunity to purchase marijuana but not to partake of it. State law prohibits consuming any form of marijuana in public places, and the Legislature last year amended Oregons Indoor Clean Air Act to include marijuana and vaporizer pens. The act prohibits tobacco smoking in the workplace, including hotels and motels, with some exceptions. The clean air law permits smoking in cigar clubs and smoke shops, with conditions attached. A marijuana business group in Oregon expects plans for a lobbying effort during the next legislative session to carve out a similar exception for marijuana smoking clubs or lounges.
What we have to do is get around the Indoor Clean Air Act, thats the main problem, said Donald Morse, director of the Oregon Cannabis Business Council. Were hoping to allow these clubs, and that would help tourists. They can buy a joint, but they cant smoke it in their hotels.
However, dispensaries sell more than dried marijuana flower, which is commonly smoked. Since June, they may also sell drinks or edibles that contain 15 milligrams or less of tetrahydrocannabinol, the active ingredient in marijuana, or a 1-gram container of concentrated THC extract. Adult consumers may purchase up to 7 grams of dried flower or one edible or extract at each dispensary per day under temporary rules for recreational marijuana sales.
Local dispensary owners reported a June sales surge they attributed to sales of edibles like gel candies, ice cream and kombucha with THC, as well as the seasonal tourist influx. Mark Capps, co-owner of Oregon Euphorics, a SW Century Drive dispensary, said 20 percent to 30 percent of the shop clientele were out-of-state visitors. Like other dispensary owners, he said tourism accounted for a bump in sales, along with the sales of edible products.
Edibles open up the market to a lot of people who may not smoke marijuana but will ingest it otherwise, he said.
Oregon Euphorics is one prospective stop on Flannerys planned tour. Another is Oregrown, a dispensary on NW Wall Street in downtown Bend. Tourists already constitute a substantial presence there, said co-founder Aviv Hadar. June saw a 40 percent increase in sales, much of it to tourists, he said.
Were just perfectly positioned as this Venus flytrap for cannabis, Hadar said. Some of the other shops, you have to get in your car and decide youre going there. Thats a tougher sell than riding your bike or walking.
Oregrown also sponsored the live entertainment at Bite of Bend, the street festival featuring local restaurants in mid-June in downtown Bend. Oregrown draped a banner with its company name across the outdoor stage. Hadar said Oregrown tries to improve its brand by sponsoring events and using discrete advertising. The shop displays no green cross or marijuana leaf, for example.
By taking that approach as a brand, we also get accepted, generally, by everyone else, he said. Lets not forget were also a lifestyle brand. Were also apparel. We try to blur the line. Youre not just coming to get cannabis, youre coming to get that Oregon experience.
Dispensary owners and employees estimated between one-fourth to one-third of their customers are tourists whose dispensary visits are incidental to some other activity, whether camping, climbing, a concert or a wedding. For many, a marijuana dispensary is a novel concept.
Weve seen many first-time people through the shop that are interested in checking it out, said Jason McAlister, co-owner of Tokyo Starfish, a dispensary on NW Arizona Avenue.
His business partner, Gary Bracelin, said business jumped appreciably in June because of several factors. Work on a city sewer line on Arizona Avenue that hindered access wrapped up in June at about the same time as THC-infused edibles became available. Plus, Market of Choice opened its new location just east of the dispensary, which attracted more consumer traffic. Bracelin attributed the approximately $2 million increase in tax revenue collected by the state in June, about $5 million total, to the availability of edibles.
With that being said, Bracelin added, tourism is having an impact.
While the mainstream business community still holds marijuana at arms length, some sectors are warming to it, he said. Bracelin said he expects to build on his and McAlisters ties to the outdoor recreation world. Bracelin founded Bend Outdoor Worx, a business incubator for the outdoor recreation sector, and McAlister is a professional snowboarder. Bracelin said those ties may help elevate the Starfish Tokyo brand. He said he expects to take part in community events as a corporate sponsor, but declined to be more specific.
We are working on some ideas and, you might say, waiting for resistance to soften, he said. Yeah, we want to be community partners and be involved in community events. Our options arent really open to us, yet.
News Moderator: Katelyn Baker
Full Article: Marijuana Tourism Comes To Bend
Author: Joseph Ditzler
Contact: 541-382-1811
Photo Credit: John Flannery
Website: The Bulletin
