Agritek Holdings Inc. (AGTK)

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MediSwipe is charging about $15 a square foot of greenhouse space fully outfitted with a computer-controlled environment of heaters and air conditioners, among other equipment. In comparison, according to real-estate research firm CoStar Group Inc., the average quoted asking rental rate for available warehouse space in the Colorado Springs industrial market area was $5.54 a square foot at the end of 2013. MediSwipe said it has three tenants in line to take up about 15 acres combined, starting as early as May.

Mr. Friedman said the industry's higher rent prices were established by individual landlords who wanted extra compensation for taking on the risk.

"A lot of landlords are able to charge a premium for this situation," he said. "What we're doing is trying to take advantage of that."

Demand for space by marijuana businesses is partly responsible for rising lease rates for industrial space, which are up 21% in Denver in the past two years, said Brad Calbert, president of the Denver office of commercial real-estate company Colliers International. He said rates for traditional warehouse tenants range from about $3.75 to $4.25 a square foot a year, while marijuana tenants are paying between $8 to $17 a square foot a year.

Meanwhile, Denver's industrial vacancy rate has fallen to just 3.1%, a historical low. Demand is at "a frenzied level right now," he said. "That's put intense pressure on the existing inventory."