Renton’s first recreational pot shop

After more than a year’s work in finding locations and working through the state’s red tape, Renton’s first recreational marijuana shop is ready to open its doors.

After more than a year’s work in finding locations and working through the state’s red tape, Renton’s first recreational marijuana shop is ready to open its doors.

The Evergreen Market is on Rainier Avenue South, across from the former Renton Chamber of Commerce building and south of a shop located just north of the city limits.

The owners promise their store will be a bit different from the norm.

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“I think we’re really focused on the experience,” said co-owner Cass Stewart last week as the finishing touches were being put in the new store.

With that in mind, the “touchstone” of the new shop, according to co-owner Eric Gaston, is a large wooden “library,” complete with rolling ladder, located behind what looks like a bar.

“This is an area that is designed to feature growers,” Gaston said.

The idea, according to Gaston, is to give growers a place to come and show off their wares, meet the public and explain a little about their product and why it is different.

Gaston said though he was not previously a part of the cannabis culture, he comes from more of a wine connoisseur background and sees parallels between the two products, such as how different growing conditions and different strains of plant produce different results.

“What appeals to me about this business is the parallels,” he said, adding that the passions of the growers he’s met should provide a great experience for the customers.

There is even a lighted magnifying glass installed on the bar so buyers can get a close look at what they are buying.

The owners also promise a “super knowledgeable and enthusiastic” staff to help customers through their buying experience.

A lot of care has been put into the aesthetics of the Evergreen Market as well, giving the new store something of a rustic feel. The guys repurposed wood from a 100-year-old barn in Lynden, Wash., for many of the features and the main entrance has a wall and gate made of twisted willow branches.

Hanging above are two stylish, green five-leafed-style lights; on the floor is a drawing of THC, the molecule that gives marijuana its potency.

Gaston said he, Stewart and fellow co-owner Jeff Anderson are also an interesting mix of owners that help drive the shop and it’s philosophy, “celebrate, educate and elevate.”

Gaston and Anderson said they are just suburban dads with little to no experience with marijuana, while Stewart had a little background in the medical side of the business and was brought in to the fold.

Between them, the group said they “cherry-picked” the best ideas they saw from other shops around the region and combined them into the Evergreen Market.

When you walk in the front door, there is a small antechamber with a plexiglass window. Gaston said there will be a menu in that section, which will be used during the early and late hours the shop is open to save staff time and for safety purposes.

Passing through a large, reclaimed wooden door, you enter the foyer, which features the willow wall and gate, which is where shoppers will have to show their ID to get in.

Inside, there are four distinct stations: edibles, flowers, concentrates and paraphernalia. And of course the library is the store’s focal point. There’s even a garage door that will be rolled up during summer months to let in natural light and some fresh air.

Stewart likens the burgeoning marijuana scene to that of coffee in the late 1980s and early 90s, when the country went from drinking corporate, large batch products like Folgers to learning about the beans and wanting more artesian options, like darker roasts or beans from different spots in the world.

Gaston received the rights for the city’s first recreational license in the May 2014 lottery, but his location was zoned-out by new city regulations limiting where in the city recreational marijuana can be sold, which is why it has taken almost a year to get to opening day, scheduled for April 18.

The store has a big celebration planned, including specials and a DJ.

“We’re excited,” said Stewart. “We want to embrace the community. Come on down and take a look.”

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www.rentonreporter.com. Reach Editor Brian Beckley at 425-255-3484, ext. 5050.