LYNNWOOD—The City of Lynnwood cut the ribbon on its very first retail cannabis store – Starbuds — Monday, April 20 (also an unofficial holiday celebrating cannabis culture) following the City’s decision to lift its longstanding ban on cannabis retail.
Starbuds Cannabis Co. is a licensed cannabis retailer focused on providing high-quality products, knowledgeable service, and a welcoming retail experience, the company states.
Located along the highly active 196th Street corridor—alongside nationally recognized brands like Starbucks and Wingstop—Starbuds represents a shift in how regulated cannabis businesses are integrated into everyday commercial spaces.
At Monday’s ribbon cutting ceremony, Lynnwood Mayor George Hurst took the podium to share a few words about the city’s, over a decade-long process, in bringing retail cannabis to the city.
“This didn’t happen overnight. These business owners have held a Lynnwood title certificate for years, waiting, preparing, staying committed to the idea that one day they would have an opportunity to open, and operate here in the city,” said Mayor Hurst, who has been sitting on the City Council through a majority of those conversations including lifting the longstanding ban on retail cannabis last September. “It’s not that this is just the first store to open but also where it’s located – being centrally located in one of Lynnwood’s active, most central, corridors, alongside nationally recognized retailers demonstrate what’s possible when policy, planning, and responsible business come together. It also speaks to the perseverance of this ownership group.”
Mayor Hurst was followed by 26-year-old Kayden Sadis, who will be managing the location, and has been working in retail cannabis since he became legal age.
“We’re proud to be opening the first retail cannabis store in the Lynnwood following the uplifting of the band and we’re committed to being a business that reflects the values of this community,” said Sadis.
To demonstrate this commitment, off the bat, Sadis, alongside other Starbuds representatives, presented a check to local organizations Housing Hope, Lynnwood Food Bank, and Washington Vocational Services for $1,000 checks each.
“It’s been a lot of waiting and sifting through red tape to get to where we are, working with multiple jurisdictions, having a lot of cooks in the kitchen but we’re just grateful to finally be here,” Starbuds Owners Derek Anderson told the Lynnwood Times. “It’s been a longtime coming but we’re just really excited.”
Anderson added that people can expect brand recognition, quality service, and educated staff when shopping at Starbuds.
The opening of Starbuds follows Lynnwood’s recent policy shift to allow cannabis retail after years of prohibition, a decision shaped through public input, local leadership, and a focus on responsible integration.
Also in attendance Monday was Senator John Lovick, Snohomish County Councilman Jared Mead, and Lynnwood City Councilman Nick Coelho.
“It took a long time for them to get here and it’s wonderful to be here and to see the community welcome this legitimate business,” Sen John Lovick told the Lynnwood Times.
Councilman Mead, on the other hand, focused primarily on Starbuds’ financial contributions to local organizations, sharing with the Lynnwood Times it was “inspiring.”
“It’s incredible for a small business to come in, open up, and look around ahead of time to see which organizations are doing good work in their community, how can they be a part of helping that, and putting their money where their mouth is and donate to these organizations, it’s really inspiring and we should celebrate that,” said Mead.
As of now there are four licenses for retail cannabis stores within the City of Lynnwood (and three certificate holders). Starbuds owns another one of these licenses but is still currently searching for a second location.
According to Josh Estes, cannabis lobbyist, the status of the other two licenses is currently unknown as locations are sparce.
Estes has been working on bringing retail cannabis to Lynnwood for the better part of the last decade.
“Seeing the vote past to move forward was very exciting. I’m very excited that the community finally has the opportunity to interact with the businesses that I’ve been working with for years,” said Estes, applauding the City of Lynnwood for how they handled, and moved along, the process.
Estes added that to see Mayor Hurst, specifically, cut the ribbon (who has been an advocate for retail cannabis for many years), in addition to seeing Starbuds generous contributions to organizations he believes in was “huge.”
“Professionally I’m ecstatic, personally I’m engaged and ecstatic. You have seniors living across the street to attend a grand opening and many of them use the products. We’ve been hearing for years that this is going to be a horrible thing for the city of Lynnwood, these stores are horrific and ugly, they’re aesthetic nuisance but that’s not what we have here. We have a store that mirrors the community that it’s in,” continued Estes.
Starbuds’ placement in a traditional commercial corridor with reduced zoning buffers highlights the continued normalization of regulated cannabis within mainstream commerce—bringing with it job creation, tax revenue, and opportunities for local reinvestment.
As one of the most recent cities to lift a longstanding cannabis retail ban in 2025, Lynnwood’s approach may serve as a model for other jurisdictions navigating similar policy decisions.
Author: Kienan Briscoe
