DENVER -- Pierre Werner, aka "Dr. Reefer," has two felony convictions for possession of pot for sale.

But the Las Vegas medical marijuana entrepreneur is gambling on turning over a new leaf in Denver where he plans a "grand opening" for the Dr. Reefer dispensary on South Broadway this weekend.

"I'm ready to open the Bellagio of medical marijuana dispensaries," Dr. Reefer declared Wednesday.

"I'm a non-violent convicted felon who's been convicted of possession with intent to sell medical marijuana," said Werner, who served time in Nevada in 2008 and New Jersey in 2000.

"Give me a chance to prove myself. I've paid my debt and now I'm starting over and I'm doing it legally," he said.

Werner is notorious in Las Vegas where he and his mom launched DrReefer.com, which he touts as "Nevada's largest medical marijuana referral service."

But they were forced to remove a billboard on a busy Vegas boulevard earlier this year after people complained about the pitch to hook up pot patients with a doctor who would help them smoke weed legally.

He also ran a "world-class" dispensary in Santa Barbara, Calif., until federal drug agents shut down his and other dispensaries by threatening legal action against their landlords.

Unlike Colorado, where "caregivers" are allowed to sell marijuana to more than one patient, Nevada law banned the sale of medical pot. It only allows a patient to grow up to seven plants, or designate one caregiver to grow it for them.

"That's what got me into trouble," said Dr. Reefer, who tested Nevada law by trying to grow the seven-maximum plants for each of his more than 200 patients. Police raided his home and found what Werner called a "significant amount" of plants.

"I was growing some medicine for some cancer patients and somebody told on me and they arrested me. The rest is history," said Werner, who vowed he never sold pot for "recreational use."

Werner has a ready answer for critics, like Denver City Councilman Charlie Brown, who worries about out-of-state "Drug Lords" swarming to Colorado to exploit the state's void of regulation for medical pot dispensaries.

"I would say to Councilman Charlie Brown his concerns are misplaced. We're bringing in 24-hour security and we're working in accordance with all state laws concerning medical marijuana," he added. "We're going to light up the parking lot."

Dr. Reefer said people should not be alarmed by three new pot dispensaries sprouting next to each other at South Broadway and East Asbury Drive in the past month. He calls other pot shop operators "colleagues" -- not competitors.

"I grow the best medical marijuana in the world," he said, so he expects to attract patients from around the metro area.

But some nearby merchants and officials at a church school, whose playground looks onto Dr. Reefer's store, aren't welcoming Werner with open arms.

"What if one of their customers is under the influence and causes a disruption and at the same time one of our students is walking by and gets hurt? Who's going to explain that to their parents?" a spokesman for Rocky Mountain SDA Academy said in a statement.

Werner said he will meet with school officials, adding that he would turn away anyone who is under the influence.

If someone causes a disturbance, Dr. Reefer said, that's what the police are for.

Dr. Reefer plans to grow marijuana in the back half of his dispensary and market weekend "Reefer Ed." classes, teaching patients the science of hydroponically growing their "worldclass" weed.

Bargain-hunters note: As a grand-opening "half-price promotion," people can pay $100 for a four-hour pot growing class. But soon classes will cost $420 for the weekend.

To give the dispensary an "air of transparency," the glass-walled shop will openly display "DrReefer.com pipes, hydroponic equipment and supplies," Werner said. "But you're not going to actually see the medicine." It will be concealed by a separate door, he said.