Arte Bella on 4th Ave closes... for now

That's because one of the first cannabis-friendly bars (and event venues, paint-and-puff locations and restaurants) in the United States, Arte Bella on 4th Avenue, has closed.

"I just couldn't recover from the summer and just everything," said former owner/operator Jen Christiansen. "I just couldn't do it anymore. I mean, the rent there was very expensive. It was very expensive."

Bella's, which was located at 340 N. 4th Ave., sported a full bar, a dedicated restaurant and hosted concerts. It also played host to several local cannabis vendor fairs, allowing brands not found in dispensaries to sell their wares to the public in person.

The memories made with customers and patrons within the greater Tucson cannabis community are what Christiansen said she'll both miss and treasure most.

"I learned a lot. I've grown as a human being, as a business person," she said. "And look what it did for people getting together and just being more open, being able to be around like-minded individuals, not being judged, you know, stuff like that."

The last full day of operations was Nov. 14, Christiansen said. Since then she's been locked out of the property.

"I still have stuff in there," she said.

While there is currently an active GoFundMe account dedicated to raising money to "keep the doors open," Christiansen said the concept of Bella's isn't fully dead. If there is a future for the business, though, it won't be at the current location. Or in the general vicinity.

"I totally want to do this again, just not downtown or on Fourth," she said. "I wanna do it like close to a dispensary or maybe partner with a dispensary."

Until that time, Christiansen said she'll try and find somewhere (or someone) to share the burden of getting another business off the ground.

And she said she hopes to see someone else try their hand(s) at opening another alcohol-friendly cannabis consumption lounge.

"I'm surprised more people haven't done it already, to tell you the truth," she said. "Like, I want more people to push the envelope, you know? Because that's how we make change. That's how we've gotten as far as we have."