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It’s not quite in the metro, but a new dispensary next to the Treasure Island Casino is close enough to be the first test of demand for recreational cannabis, coming at least nine months before other stores will open.
Island Peži, the latest cannabis store to open on tribal land in Minnesota, is already open but will be officially launched Saturday. The dispensary is located between Hastings and Red Wing on Prairie Island Indian Community land, about 40 minutes from St. Paul. That makes it much closer than previously opened tribal stores by the White Earth Nation, the Red Lake Nation and the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe.
Island Peži (pronounced pay-ZHEE) comes from the Dakota word for “grass.” The logo is based on historic beadwork produced by a tribal member, said Blake Johnson, president of the tribal company that operates the dispensary.
Johnson grew up