Carmichaels facility one of 12 to get permits to grow medical marijuana
The Pennsylvania Department of Health has awarded a Carmichaels area facility one of 12 receiving permits to be grower/processors of medical marijuana.
A facility to be operated by AGRiMED Industries of PA LLC along Thomas Road in Cumberland Township, Greene County, and PurePenn LLC, along Industry Road in the old McKeesport millsite, were winners in the Southwestern region of the state.
Philadelphia-based AGRiMED announced in March its plans for a $25 million facility in an 80,000-square-foot building on a 61-acre site.
“We’re planning on a state-of-the-art greenhouse,” AGRiMED’s chairman and chief diversity officer Sterling Crockett said. “We’re very excited about the potential.”
Rep. Pam Snyder, D-Jefferson Township, lauded the decision to award a permit in her district.
“I favored allowing medical marijuana in Pennsylvania because it will alleviate the pain of those who suffer from a variety of medical conditions,” Snyder said. “Tightly regulated and secure growing and processing facilities were going to be sanctioned in the commonwealth as an inevitable result.
“I’m glad to see that one of them was chosen for placement in the 50th Legislative District, because we’re looking at 40 jobs right off the bat and 100 workers within five years, according to news reports.”
Pittsburgh-based PurePenn plans development on a 40-acre site just inside the Regional Industrial Development Corp. of Southwestern Pennsylvania’s Riverplace Industrial Center of McKeesport, the former U.S. Steel National Tube Works site.
Two permits were granted in each of six regions across the commonwealth.
“We remain on track to get medication to patients with serious medical conditions in 2018,” said John Collins, director of the department’s Office of Medical Marijuana, in a Tuesday news conference. “Grower/processors may not begin to grow medical marijuana until the department has deemed they are operational.”
“I’m excited to see this medical marijuana law which I worked so hard to help pass being implemented and will be able to get medicine into the hands of those who need it in 2018,” said state Sen. Pat Stefano, R-Bullskin Township, a co-sponsor of the medical marijuana bill that became Act 16 of 2016.
For Crockett, the proposed project is also personal. Five years ago, he said, his daughter had just given birth to his granddaughter. A short time later, however, it was discovered his daughter had kidney cancer and had a kidney removed.
During her recuperation, Crockett said she used edible medical marijuana to ease the pain.
“Spending time meeting with patients, government officials, business leaders, community leaders and law enforcement; one thing can be said the support has been phenomenal and they understand what this medicine can do for the community,” Crockett said.
There were 177 applications for those permits, and those rejected are getting notices mailed to them, with forms to process an appeal should any wish to do so.
“The 12 permittees will have six months to become operational,” Collins said.
Another point made by Collins in his news conference was that any letters of support from state lawmakers was not taken into account in determining permittees.
“I think that it is wholly appropriate that these licenses were to be handed out based on merit without considering lawmakers letters or other outside influence,” Stefano said.
However, the Bullskin Township Republican noted that one of the selections for the Southeast Region including Philadelphia was Franklin Labs LLC, whose board chairman is John Hanger, whose website biography notes his service under four governors – and his role as Gov. Tom Wolf’s Secretary of Policy and Planning after advocating adoption of a medical marijuana law during a brief run for governor.
“I think we need some oversight done by the legislature to ensure that (merit selection) was indeed the case given the awarding of a license to the Governor’s former Policy Secretary John Hanger,” Stefano said.
More permits could be awarded later. Under Act 16 as signed last April by Wolf, the Department of Health could issue 25 permits for grower/processor operations and 50 for dispensaries.
Only 27 permits will be issued for dispensaries by the end of June, Collins said Tuesday. In the 11 southwestern counties around Pittsburgh, five permits will be issued for dispensaries, with two going to Allegheny County and one each to Butler, Washington and Westmoreland counties.