How King City Gardens grows
King City Gardens is a Level 1 cannabis cultivator that won its Ohio license in 2021. It grows in a renovated former Kmart in Forest Park, where its products begin with mother plants in a room it calls the Mom Room, and its flower grows in seven double-stacked rooms lit with Fluence’s VYPR and SPYDR fixtures.
Sources: Cannabis Business Times, May 19, 2025 (opens in a new tab); PR Newswire, September 7, 2023 (opens in a new tab); MedicateOhio, October 17, 2025 (opens in a new tab); FOX19, August 27, 2025 (opens in a new tab); Business Wire (Fluence), via DutchNews, May 14, 2025 (opens in a new tab)
A Level 1 license
King City Gardens won its license in 2021, after two denied applications and a court fight, and had plants growing by August 2023.
Source: Cannabis Business Times, May 19, 2025 (opens in a new tab)
At its launch in 2023 it was one of only 21 Level 1 cultivators in Ohio, with 25,000 square feet of grow space in eight flower rooms.
After Ohio’s recreational sales began, it received a dual-use license. Before that, as a cultivator, it could only sell to other dispensaries.
The Mom Room
Every King City Gardens product begins with its mother plants, kept in what the company calls the Mom Room. FOX19 described it as the place where all of King City Gardens’ products originate.
The flower rooms
The grow has 25,000 square feet of grow space, laid out as seven double-stacked rooms with roughly 2,000 plants apiece.
Sources: MMJ Daily, May 15, 2025 (opens in a new tab); Hortibiz, May 14, 2025 (opens in a new tab)
The rooms are lit with Fluence’s VYPR and SPYDR fixtures, said Richard Mursinna, Director of Operations. In one single-stack room of 2,000 plants, hydraulic systems raise and lower the VYPR lights.
Sources: Business Wire (Fluence), via DutchNews, May 14, 2025 (opens in a new tab); MMJ Daily, May 15, 2025 (opens in a new tab)
Justin Matherly, Director of Grow Operations, says the facility saves 40% more on electricity with LEDs than with high-pressure sodium fixtures.
After harvest
King City Gardens sells its flower in three tiers: Gold, the top shelf; Silver, its Small Buds line; and G Brand, its house line, sold only at The Garden. Its pre-rolls are made with 100% flower, never shake or trim.
Source: King City Gardens (kingcitygardens.com/flower, archived), April 15, 2026 (opens in a new tab)
Its Live Rosin is solventless, made from single-source, strain-specific, fresh-frozen flower with ice, water, heat and pressure. It also makes Live Resin from fresh-frozen flower, and Liquid Diamonds, which it contrasts with traditional distillate.
Source: King City Gardens (kingcitygardens.com/processing, archived), April 15, 2026 (opens in a new tab)
Where
The grow sits in the OmniPlex building in Forest Park, once a Kmart and a laser tag arena, which now holds King City Gardens’ cultivation and processing.
Questions
Where does King City Gardens grow its cannabis?
The grow sits in the OmniPlex building in Forest Park, once a Kmart and a laser tag arena, which now holds King City Gardens’ cultivation and processing. The team repurposed a Kmart with 100,000 square feet of buildable space and completed the build-out in eight months.
What license does King City Gardens hold?
King City Gardens won its license in 2021, after two denied applications and a court fight, and had plants growing by August 2023. After Ohio’s recreational sales began, it received a dual-use license. Before that, as a cultivator, it could only sell to other dispensaries.
How are the flower rooms lit?
The rooms are lit with Fluence’s VYPR and SPYDR fixtures, said Richard Mursinna, Director of Operations. In one single-stack room of 2,000 plants, hydraulic systems raise and lower the VYPR lights. Justin Matherly, Director of Grow Operations, says the facility saves 40% more on electricity with LEDs than with high-pressure sodium fixtures.
Where do King City Gardens plants start?
Every King City Gardens product begins with its mother plants, kept in what the company calls the Mom Room. FOX19 described it as the place where all of King City Gardens’ products originate.
Sources
Every statement on this page rests on these reports, each linked.
- 01King City Gardens' Untold Story (opens in a new tab)Cannabis Business Times, May 19, 2025Our brief on this story
- 02Introducing King City Gardens: Elevating Medical Cannabis Cultivation in Cincinnati, Ohio (opens in a new tab)PR Newswire, September 7, 2023Our brief on this story
- 03King City Gardens Debuts First Branded Dispensary in Camp Washington: Grand Opening October 18th (opens in a new tab)MedicateOhio, October 17, 2025Our brief on this story
- 04One year of recreational cannabis in Ohio: How is the industry doing? (opens in a new tab)FOX19, August 27, 2025
- 05King City Gardens Sees Surge in Production Under Fluence LED Technology (opens in a new tab)Business Wire (Fluence), via DutchNews, May 14, 2025
- 06Two weeks after Ohio's recreational sales began, marijuana cultivators look toward future expansion (opens in a new tab)WCPO, August 21, 2024
- 07Growing cannabis in an old K-Mart (opens in a new tab)MMJ Daily, May 15, 2025
- 08How a renovated K-Mart became home to Ohio's premier cultivator (opens in a new tab)Hortibiz, May 14, 2025
- 09Flower (opens in a new tab)King City Gardens (kingcitygardens.com/flower, archived), April 15, 2026
- 10Processing (opens in a new tab)King City Gardens (kingcitygardens.com/processing, archived), April 15, 2026