MedMen, the medical marijuana dispensary with private equity backing, is launching a second Manhattan location.
The firm is in advanced talks to take a 4,000-square-foot space at 33 Ninth Avenue, according to Crain’s. Ground floor asking rents are reportedly $500 a square foot.
In April, the Los Angeles-based first moved into a 10,000-square-foot space at 433 Fifth Avenue. The move to Manhattan came after its co-chairman, Chris Leavy, former chief investment officer of fundamental equities at BlackRock, launched a $250 million opportunity fund to draw investors and find property in Los Angeles, Las Vegas and Manhattan.
Under New York law, marijuana is legal for medical use, but not for recreational purposes. MedMen is allowed only to sell extracts or edibles, not in a form that can be smoked, such as the plant.
The firm announced last week that its chief financial officer had resigned and that it had slashed its fundraising goals from $120 million to $75 million, prompting a decline in stocks. [Crain’s] — David Jeans