People came from as far away as Calgary and Edmonton to learn more about the Candre Cannabis proposal to construct a medicinal cannabis production facility in Sundre.
A crowd of approximately 200 attended an open house and job fair last Tuesday evening at the Sundre Community Centre .
Jesse Beaudry, the company’s president and CEO, attended with several members of his team to provide information and address any concerns. To date, comments from the public have all been positive, he said.
While some people had questions, none of them seemed vehemently — or even remotely — opposed to the project. It could create dozens of permanent full-time jobs in the community, in turn spurring growth in the residential market while contributing a substantial sum in commercial taxes to the municipality.
There was, on the other hand, plenty of support expressed by those who attended, including a Calgary resident who is interested in a potential career with the company and seemed keen to jump at the opportunity to move to Sundre from the city.
“It’s one of the most amazing proposals I’ve ever seen for the development of a cannabis facility. I haven’t seen anything like it. I’ve only ever seen big expansions, but I really like what Jesse’s doing; starting small and making sure that they’re still strong enough to build for a second or third facility,” said Nathan Campbell, referring to the company’s plan to deploy in phases.
Curiosity also compelled Edmonton resident Mike Smith to attend the open house, and he spoke favourably about the multi-million-dollar proposal as well.
“It’s really organized. I’ve seen a lot of guys with their grow-ops that are just jumping into it. These guys really seem to be taking it slow, doing it right. Community involvement is huge. I see a lot of them saying there’s community involvement, but there doesn’t seem to be. It looks good; I think it’s great for the community,” Smith said.
Jon Allan, the Town of Sundre’s economic development officer, said the significance of the potential investment cannot be understated.
“The town already has a diverse economy, and this would add to it even further,” he said, adding the doors could open to spinoff industries such as craft breweries with infused cannabis or a biomass facility that could process any biowaste generated by the facility.
“It also means greater demand for real estate, which potentially also means increases in the market values of homes, which will increase the amount of revenue to the town in terms of property tax, which means more services for the town.”
Although some bureaucratic hoops must still technically be jumped through, Candre is eager to start construction, provided of course residents get behind the proposal.
“We’re fully funded and ready to build,” Beaudry said, later adding, “(But) there is absolutely no way we will succeed unless the community supports us and works with us.”
When an opportunity such as this proposal comes a-knockin’, rejecting the offer would be nothing shy of complete folly.
However, if the open house was any indication, there is no shortage of support and Sundre could very likely become home to the region’s newest cannabis production facility.
Click here and here for more coverage on last week's open house and job fair.
— Ducatel is the Round Up’s editor
