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Fifty First Parallel hoping to break ground for Lethbridge cannabis production facility in weeks

Jun 20, 2018 | 1:58 PM

LETHBRIDGE – “We are really with our heads down, trying to get ready for legalization.”

Jason Kujath, President and Chief Operating Officer for Fifty-First Parallel, says site preparation for the phases one and two of the city’s first cannabis growing and production facility along 36 St. N. near Triple M Housing is now underway.

He’s hoping there will be an official ground-breaking in just a few weeks.

“We are working with the city and about to really push things forward with the city with our development permits and such as we speak. And of course, in light of yesterday’s announcement we’re quite excited and we think – we obviously have been planning for this announcement to come for some time.”

Kujath called Monday’s Senate vote a monumental time in Canadian history, and a step towards social acceptance of cannabis.

He says the company is also moving forward with its retail operations, which will include a storefront in Lethbridge as well.

“We will have eight stores opening up for whenever the date actually is (Oct. 17). On the production side, we are getting really excited to start rolling out our plan in Lethbridge.”

The company has redesigned its facility and will be submitting new development permit applications after consulting with the city’s development team and engineers.

According to Fifty First Parallel’s website, the first phase of the project will consist of a 50,000-square foot greenhouse complex and a 25,000-square foot custom built production and office facility.

There will be 12 growing rooms, with fully internalized HVAC control, temperature control, heating and cooling systems, humidity and climate control.

Phase one is expected to have a production capacity of around 3,500 kg of cannabis per year. By the end of the third phase, the company is expected to directly employ about 150 people and will be capable of producing up to 12,600 kg of cannabis per year.

There will also be a 1,000-square foot high security vault, capable of holding up to 15,000 kg of finished product.

Kujath says updated plans include potentially having construction completed by the end of 2018 and planting their first crops in the first few months of 2019. 

For more information, go to https://51st.ca/ .