The Peoria area's first legally-sanctioned cannabis consumption event is happening this weekend.
This is the fifth annual Cannabis Camp, but the first one since recreational cannabis usage was legalized in 2020. Last year's event was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
In past years, Cannabis Camp was hosted at Kelleher's on the riverfront. This year, the event is happening at the new High Harbor Cannabis Events Center in West Peoria, at the site of the former Sky Harbor Steakhouse.
Katie Sanders is marketing director from Trinity Compassionate Care in Peoria.
"Having it down in Peoria just educates people on cannabis," said Sanders.
The festival features vendors from around Illinois, as well as cultivators, grow shops, live music, art, and food trucks.
"We just want to bring the focus to the locals about what cannabis is, what it can do for you, and how it can be medically used," she said.
No cannabis will be sold at the event, but visitors are able to bring their own for the first time.
That includes not only the smokable form of cannabis, but also flour concentrates, vapes, and edibles. Sanders said some of those are more discrete, which can help break down the stigma for people who use cannabis products for medical reasons. But she said she thinks attitudes may also be changing.
"It's not that, I don't know...just that normal stigma that people place on cannabis. So, yeah, we're always just trying to break it down, you know, day by day, and hopefully just have people understand what the plant is," Sanders said.
Visitors won't be allowed to spend the night at the festival, which runs Friday and Saturday. Patrons must be age 21 or older.
Much like alcohol, cannabis usage can impair someone's ability to drive. Illinois law governs the amount of cannabis an individual can legally transport, as well as how it must be stored while in transit.
