Tenleytown soon to welcome licensed medical cannabis store

A muted blue storefront on Wisconsin Avenue adorned with an image of a leaping dolphin and a candy-striped sign reading “scuba” across the front will soon get a modern makeover.

It’s the location at which a medical cannabis store is slated to open later this year in D.C.’s Tenleytown neighborhood.

The shop will be named C’est Moi, according to its owner Colen Jones. In French, the phrase means “it’s me.” It’s an expression he felt well represented the atmosphere he wants to nurture in the store – one that celebrates individuality. 

“It’s like, ‘Hey, if I choose to go this route and I like marijuana … it’s me. It’s who I am,” Jones said. 

According to the city’s Alcoholic Beverage and Cannabis Administration, Tenleytown currently has no other licensed medical retailers while the city’s third ward, which includes much of D.C.’s northwest quadrant, only has one other.

The store, which will occupy the space of a former scuba shop at 4932 Wisconsin Avenue, is scheduled to open in the next two to three months, Jones said. Jones, who comes from a military family, said the store will offer a 15% discount for veterans. 

While Jones has operated dispensaries before, this will be his first location in his hometown. Providing cannabis to the residents of Tenleytown and the surrounding area is not a role he takes lightly, he said. Everything about the operation will be designed toward convenience and privacy for the shoppers.

“I hope [the store] adds more safety and peace and comfortability,” said Jones, who’s from D.C.’s Northwest neighborhood. 

Some shoppers may not want passersby to know they are buying cannabis. That’s why the front of the store will be designed like a waiting room with a sitting area and drinks available. Shoppers will then get buzzed into the display area and their identification will be checked twice, Jones said – once in the front of the store and again when the customer makes the purchase.

Jones, who said he’s been working on this project for two years, liked the character of the Tenleytown neighborhood and said it aligned with the kind of facility he wanted to create.

“I feel like that’s what they were missing, like an upscale dispensary,” he said.

Residents he spoke to noted they sometimes have to drive a significant distance or visit neighborhoods they don’t feel safe in to get cannabis.

Though C’est Moi will be the only licensed facility in the neighborhood, once it passes various city assessments, the corridor on which it will be located has numerous smoke shops, some of which have been known to illicitly distribute cannabis to minors, said Jonathan Bender, the region’s Advisory Neighborhood Commission chair.

“I’ve been trying for a long time to get rid of the illegal places,” Bender said, adding that they tend to also be “robbery magnets.”

Problem locations in the neighborhood include Smoke Island and Smokes and Vapes, the latter of which recently closed, Bender said. A different Smoke Island location on Wisconsin Avenue, farther south in the city, was served a cease and desist letter in July for selling cannabis illegally.

Possessing cannabis became legal in D.C. in 2015. In 2022, the district expanded its access to medical cannabis, allowing anyone 21 or over to self-certify for it. This helped give way to a rise in stores selling other products for an upcharge and “gifting” cannabis alongside it. It’s a practice the city council passed a law to better combat earlier this year.

The Tenleytown neighborhood and surrounding area house multiple public schools as well as American University, making the region a potential hotbed of sales to those below the age of 21. 

Only 11 licensed facilities are currently operating in the district, according to the city’s Alcoholic Beverage and Cannabis Administration. However, demand for the products is high. In August, the city had 26,204 unique medical cannabis patients producing more than $2.8 million in sales for dispensaries, according to an administration report. Across each month of 2024, cannabis sales generated between around $2.5 million and nearly $2.9 million.

Having C’est Moi on the block will hopefully offer residents a safe, legal avenue through which to purchase cannabis, Bender said. He’s confident Jones will follow all necessary procedures based on how compliant he’s been so far, he said, explaining Jones “was willing to do pretty much whatever we asked.”

The store is scheduled to open Dec. 1 at the latest and operate from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Sunday.