West Milford 210-acre farm one step closer to growing medical marijuana

Show Caption Hide Caption Health commissioner talks medical marijuana NJ Health Commissioner, Dr. Shereef Elnahal speaks at Hackensack University Medical Center about medical marijuana. Wednesday, July 11, 2018

WEST MILFORD — A 210-acre farm in upper Passaic County is a step closer to becoming a multimillion-dollar cannabis cultivation center to serve New Jersey’s rapidly growing medical marijuana program.

Once home to a driving range, miniature golf course and farm store, Evergreen Farm is at the center of a pending application to be one of six new medical marijuana cultivation, processing and sales operations in the state.

The proposal by Evergreen Cultivation LLC to build a 30,000-square-foot greenhouse has received support from municipal officials. The greenhouse would be on the 5-acre portion of the Union Valley Road farm where the driving range sat.

“I’m really excited about this opportunity, even if it’s a one-in-150 shot,” said Michael Chazukow of the New Jersey division of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws.

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West Milford's all-Republican Township Council, in a 5-1 vote, approved a resolution in support of Evergreen Cultivation’s proposal on Aug. 15. Applications for the state program are due Aug. 31.

Applicants will not be selected until Nov. 1, state records show. Any cultivated product would be unlikely to hit the market before spring 2019.

Sales would take place up the street at the former Lakeland Bank in the township’s Hewitt section, said Daniel Granatell of Evergreen Cultivation.

“We really think this is a great opportunity for the town — in terms of economics, in terms of job creation,” Granatell said.

A growing medical program

The proposal from Evergreen Cultivation comes on the back of Gov. Phil Murphy’s early-summer move to double the state’s marijuana providers to meet growing demand. With more than 28,000 registered patients by early July, the state program is on track to double its numbers in 2018, state records show.

Of the 10,000 patients who signed up in the first six months of the year, 6,300 cited anxiety or chronic pain of visceral origin or related to musculoskeletal disorders. They are part of six new qualifying conditions introduced at the end of March. Other conditions include migraines and Tourette's syndrome.

Chazukow said expanding access is critical for patients suffering from life-threatening seizures and other ailments. Having a dispensary in West Milford remains a long shot, however, he said.

High uncertainty

More than 800 people attended the Aug. 9 Department of Health forum on the licensing application process, according to reports. Of the six licenses that encompass cultivation, processing and sales, only two will be available for all of Bergen, Essex, Hudson, Morris, Passaic, Sussex and Warren counties.

The six new licensees would adopt the structure of the existing six in Bellmawr, Cranbury, Egg Harbor Township, Montclair, Woodbridge and Secaucus, which opened on June 18. Each licensee must grow, process and sell cannabis.

“They might not even get the license," Chazukow said of the West Milford business, "but just taking this step has really been a huge step forward in changing the public perception, especially locally.”

Economic stumulant?

Councilman Michael Hensley said he understands concerns about having a dispensary in town. However, Hensley, who has publicly supported the cannabis industry, said the former bank is “the absolutely perfect place for it, in terms of reviving and reinvigorating that side of town.”

The bank closed July 2016. It was purchased last September for $400,000 by Granatell’s group, records show. Across the street lies a shopping center flanked by a former A&P supermarket that closed in 2016 and a Sears Hardware store that closed in 2017. The latter is being renovated for a planned fall opening of a Tractor Supply Co. retail store.

Granatell said Evergreen Cultivation is prepared to run a pharmaceutical-grade operation. Private, 24-7 security and full interior and exterior surveillance directly linked to the Department of Health are planned, he added.

More than 200 acres of the 210-acre farm, purchased by Granatell’s father and uncles in 1994, is assessed as farmland and responsible for about $1,100 in annual property taxes. The proposed greenhouse and other improvements on that land would be fully taxable, township officials said.

From farm to pipe

If approved, the operation could be one of the last of its kind in New Jersey. Recently proposed regulations from the Department of Health call for separate licensing processes for cultivation, processing and sales. If the regulations are approved, applications for those separate licenses could be made available later this year.

The vertical integration of cultivation, processing and sales is logical to avoid finger-pointing in the event of any mishaps when bringing medical marijuana to market, Chazukow said. Nevertheless, he said, having one company involved in every aspect of the operation is not ideal.

“It makes sense for streamlining the expansion initially, but I’m also thinking that it’s clear to everyone involved that it’s unsustainable,” Chazukow said. “In the long run, it will only work to exclude people from the market.”

Chazukow submitted a resolution in support of the legalization, taxation and regulation of marijuana for adult use to the town's governing body earlier this year. That resolution has been held for discussion at a later date, municipal officials said.

Council members noted that their support of Evergreen Cultivation's proposed business was restricted to medical marijuana.

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