BUFFALO, N.Y. (WBEN) - Officials at the head of the California-based company that plans to bring a cannabis campus to Western New York were in Buffalo on Thursday to answer questions and educate the community about its project.
Flora - California Prime, Inc. purchased a 47-acre parcel of land from the City of Buffalo at Lakeside Commerce Park in January and company officials told reporters they plan to invest $200 million in private money to build the campus, which will not only be used as an incubator space and education for students at SUNY Erie, but also for commercial purposes.
"We are focused on a suite of products that range from smoke-able products, but the vast majority are health and wellness oriented," Jim Caccavo, CEO of Flora, said. "Think of balms, lotions, beverages, edibles, things of that nature."
Much of the cannabis campus' future is predicated on the New York State Legislature. If marijuana is legalized in this year's Albany session, co-founder Brad Termini is hopeful the campus will be built and be running by the second half of 2020. If it's not, the company plans to back out of its production plans.
"We've agreed to a mechanism with (the City of Buffalo) that would allow us to develop our project in the event the legislation does pass," Termini said. "It would allow them to take the land back in the event the legislation doesn't pass."
"If we're able to obtain a permit from the State of New York, the odds are 100 percent the plant will be built in the City of Buffalo," Termini added.
Despite questions about marijuana's future in New York State, Flora officials still held Thursday's press conference as a way to extend their brand.
"If I tell you I'm going to deliver a balm to you and it's going to help the eczema on your skin, it better work," Caccavo said. "It better work over time and consistently so you, as a consumer, will say to yourself 'wow...it worked'. Over time, hopefully you trust us and eventually you love us."
Termini said he expects the cannabis to create a minimum of 500 jobs.
"We're here to listen to the community and what components the community would want to see in the project," Termini explained. "We're here to education and clear up misconceptions that may be out there in the industry. One of the main misconceptions I'd like to clarify is that we're not here to make promises for jobs and economic development in return for some special subsidies or for New York State to build us a facility. All we're looking for is a permit to operate."
Location was key for Flora officials, who said that Buffalo is near the "cannabis hub" of North America. Termini said there's nine Canadian companies that have a public valuation of more than $1 billion.
During Thursday's press conference, Amazon announced it would no longer open its second headquarters in New York City. Termini said they're focused on doing work in Buffalo and officials said it's likely not feasible to operate in New York City.
"The ten licenses that have been given out to date have all gone downstate," Termini said. "That's a fact. We need to get part of this industry to part of Western New York. Not just for Flora, but for others. We think it is just a natural fitting evolution in Buffalo's economic renaissance to generate new-age manufacturing."
The company plans to apply for its permits for the 1.25 million square foot building within the next couple of weeks.