According to a report from the Dayton Daily News, Jimmy Gould and Ian James, the masterminds behind a 2015 rec proposal, are seeking to create a giant marijuana grow operation in the state of Ohio and applying for one of the 12 large cultivation licenses allowed under law.
Doing business as CannaAscend Ohio, the two entrepreneurs, intend to set up operations in the small town of Wilmington, which is located in between Cincinnati and Columbus.
“This has been a long journey, but a satisfying one because we’ve always kept our eye on legalizing medical cannabis for chronically-ill Ohioans — our returning veterans suffering from PTSD, children with epilepsy, those suffering from Alzheimer’s or Parkinson’s and the many others suffering from debilitating illnesses,” Gould said in a statement.
CannaAscend Ohio is pushing to build a 25,000-square foot grow operation on a little over 19 acres in Clinton County. However, the development deal will only go through if the company is awarded a license.
If all goes according to plan, the facility would later push the limits of the law by moving ahead with an expansion effort that would create a 75,000-square foot facility.
A press release indicates the total operation could cost $45 million.
For now, state regulators are still trying to hash out all of the details for how marijuana will be grown throughout the state. These details are expected to be published sometime at the beginning of May. Once this happens, the state will begin accepting applications from wannabe cultivators, all of which will be required to put plants in the ground within nine months after approval.
Wilmington has its fingers crossed.
The town has struggled to regain its economic stability after the closing of DHL, reports Cleveland.com. That job situation there became even more hopeless after Amazon decided against using the area to expand its operations. It is for this reason that CannaAscend has the full support of local officials. The proposed cultivation site would create around 220 new jobs.
“The resulting jobs and potential for greater research opportunities offers important prospects for partnerships with area colleges that have a focus on agriculture science, chemistry and biology,” Wilmington Mayor John Stanforth said a statement.
Ohio’s medical marijuana program will allow people with 20 conditions to participate with a recommendation from a doctor. The industry will bring to market a variety of cannabis products, with the exception of flower. Smoking marijuana, even for medicinal purposes, is still prohibited under state law.
