Nation’s Biggest Medical Pot Farm Coming To Michigan?
Steve Elliott | tokeofthetown
Thursday, May. 20 2010 @ 6:17AM
Photo: Legal Juice |
All those plants, and not a pants pocket anywhere. |
Let’s get one thing out of the way to begin with. If you get a job at the proposed biggest medical marijuana farm in the United States, you will be required to wear coveralls without pockets, so don’t plan on pilfering.
The huge, 25,000-plant marijuana growing operation could be coming to Michigan soon. A Florida man has approached officials to convert an empty paper plant in Frenchtown Charter Township into a gargantuan cannabis growing factory.
The planned operation would have 340 compartments, reports Dick Berry of WTOL. Each can supply five qualified patients and grow a dozen plans per patient, “which means the building could house up to 25,000 plants worth millions,” Berry reports.
The growing center would be located just outside Monroe, Michigan. Monroe was likely selected because there are no operating factories in the area, according to Frenchtown Charter Township Supervisor James McDevitt.
While officials expect to see a noticeable increase in revenue, they cannot actually charge taxes on the marijuana, according to McDevitt.
“He said we could charge a user fee which could bring in as much as $50,000 a month,” McDevitt said.
A neighbor, who lives across the street from the proposed marijuana operation, said he is a bit shocked, but open minded.
“It (might) be better for the government or state to get money for marijuana instead of spending money to fight it all the time, which seems to be a never-ending battle,” Saum said.
Legal questions, including possible zoning issues, still need to be hammered out. Also potentially problematic are federal rules against marijuana cultivation, particularly in view of the large numbers of plants being considered. Stiff mandatory minimums begin to kick in at the 100-plant level.
Supervisor McDevitt said about 30 jobs would be created. Workers would be required to wear coveralls without pockets to lessen chances of an employee smuggling marijuana out of the plant.
Berry reports that officials in Bedford Township and Dundee have also been approached about similar large scale marijuana growing operations.
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