Las Vegas Sun

March 18, 2024

Bring-your-own-pot

Medicinal marijuana users can toke and talk at new “compassion club”

This ain’t Starbucks, but you can still get a cup o’ Joe, plus a little TLC. Make that THC.

Part public cafe, part members-only club, the Bluebird Coffee Shop exists for medical marijuana users, their caregivers and anyone looking for information on prescription herbs—or a coffee beverage and some vegetarian grub. As the first “compassion club” in Las Vegas, Bluebird is not a dispensary. It’s a place where medical marijuana cardholders can come to smoke and socialize. They’ll help cardholders locate a dispensary, or refer potential patients to prescribing physicians.

Bluebird Coffee Shop

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“I identified a need in town last December that there was a growing movement in the medicinal marijuana community,” says Bluebird co-owner Larry (last name withheld per request).

“This gives [cardholders] an outside place to come and medicate themselves in a safe environment,” says co-owner Chris Lexis.

While the assorted not-for-profit dispensaries in the Las Vegas area provide the drug, Larry says there hasn’t been a venue for the public to educate themselves about medicinal marijuana. Bluebird is completely legal and operates in adherence to guidelines set forth by law enforcement.

Details

Bluebird Coffee Shop
2205 Paradise Rd., 735-9750, Mon.-Sun. 8 a.m-8 p.m.

“We are abiding by the laws of the state of Nevada to the T,” Larry says. Club members must sign a waver as well as observe signs posted throughout the venue as to what they can and cannot do while on the premises. In addition, Bluebird makes sure all members get home safe—either via a designated driver or using a taxi voucher—one of the benefits of membership. In addition, members of the compassion club at the Bluebird are given access to a clean modern lounge area, complete with flat-screen TV, rolling papers, vaporizer, bottled water and more. For the first month, membership is $5 per visit, or $50 for the month. After September, membership will be $10 per visit, $100 per month or $1000 annually.

Both Larry and Lexis believe many patients and interested people have been looking for a place to connect with others like themselves. “I think that this community in the press and in mainstream society has been demonized,” says Larry. “It’s a legitimate movement for legitimate people that have legitimate problems.”

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