Medical cannabis is in the works for the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians (EBCI) and will be dispensed in 2023. Qualla is the corporation set up to run the business for the Tribe, and the dispensary will be located at a building known to many on the Qualla Boundary – the old Tribal Bingo Building.
“It will be the largest retail center in the world the day we open,” said Forrest Parker, a member of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians and Qualla Enterprises, LLC general manager.

Employees work in a medical cannabis grow facility, operated by Qualla Enterprises, LLC, in the Cooper’s Creek area in Cherokee, N.C. The company is set to open a dispensary for medical cannabis in the old Tribal Bingo Building in 2023. (Photos courtesy of Qualla Enterprises, LLC)
“We’re not talking about just growing cannabis. We’re talking about growing a large quantity of cannabis. So, that’s a really important piece of this that this company and its partners had to really figure out…there’s a lot of ways to do that.”

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