Green Thumb Industries began breaking ground for a new cannabis cultivation facility at the former Mid-Orange Correctional Facility site in Warwick, New York.
New Cannabis Facility For Green Thumb Industries
The Chicago-based company initiated construction on Thursday with hopes to have a complete operating cannabis cultivation facility by the year 2023. The new Hudson Valley site will join other cannabis companies on John Hicks Drive. Green Thumb Industries will be joining the medical marijuana and hemp testing facility, Kaycha Labs in New York. Additionally, they will be joining Citiva Medical, a company that is researching cannabis’ efficacy in the field of medicine. In fact, Citiva Medical has already begun constructing its own greenhouse and processing facility on John Hicks Drive as well.
The legalization of adult recreational cannabis use in New York has prompted manufacturers to start planning developments for cultivation and production sites in the state. Last month, Cresco Labs proposed a cannabis cultivation facility in the Town of Wawarsing. This could create 300 to 400 job opportunities once construction starts in 2022.
Image via @gtigrows on Instagram
The Benefits Of The Facility
Green Thumb Industries creates consumer packaged goods and distributes branded cannabis products. Additionally, they cover 14 states with 16 manufacturing sites and 64 retail locations.
It is almost ironic that a cannabis manufacturing facility will exist where there used to be a prison. A prison that more than likely held numerous people incarcerated for cannabis-related offenses. CEO and founder of the Chicago-based company, Ben Kovler said, “it’s sort of a full-circle moment.” Of course, Kovler is also referring to the company’s focus on employing people who have been incarcerated. This is something that they have done at other facilities.
The company is doing more than investing $150 million into repurposing the prison site in Hudson Valley as a cannabis cultivation facility. They are also creating over 100 construction jobs and 100 permanent positions. Furthermore, Green Thumb Industries offers benefits for the employees at the future facility. They are ready to create a strong and legitimate cannabis industry for the people in the state of New York.
