BERNARDSTON — Happy Valley Compassion Center, a nonprofit medical marijuana organization, is leasing a building at 199 Huckle Hill Road with the intent to transform it into its first indoor grow facility.
The building is a former restaurant that most recently was called Bella Notte.
Jim Counihan, chief executive officer of Happy Valley Compassion Center, said that he and his two business partners decided Bernardston would be a good location for the facility due to the town’s rich farming history and skilled local farmers.
“We were looking for farming communities where there’s a lot of skilled farmers. We believe that this is agriculture in one form or another,” Counihan said. “The people of Bernardston started to pop up on our radar as skilled folks that could eventually be employees.”
The town of Bernardston also provided Happy Valley Compassion Center with a letter of support following meetings before the Board of Selectmen, the Planning Board and the Zoning Board of Appeals, as well as a question and answer session with town residents earlier this year.
“We found that the town of Bernardston was willing to work with us and be reasonable,” Counihan said, adding that the town didn’t have a preference on the facility’s address.
Counihan said that while residents were largely open to having a grow facility in Bernardston, many did not feel it was appropriate to have a dispensary. Happy Valley Compassion Center is leasing two other locations in Greenfield and Hadley for use as dispensaries, and is looking to add a third and final location.
When considering locations for the grow facility, Counihan said he and his partners were looking for property with existing infrastructure that they could lease under terms that made sense for the business.
“If there’s a building that’s pretty close to what you need, that’s even better,” he said. “It’s difficult because a lot of property owners are willing to lease space, but are not willing to lease space to people from this particular industry.”
The building that Happy Valley Compassion Center is leasing will be easier to secure because of its rather secluded location. Counihan explained during town meetings that he plans to work closely with town officials to ensure the building is equipped with a security system and guarded by police if necessary.
“We’ll have to do some construction to get it properly fit out for our purposes,” he continued.
Counihan explained that there are different steps in the grow process, and that the plants are segregated by room. Thus, the building will need to be more closed off and compartmentalized, as opposed to having an open floor plan.
“At this point, we’re knee-deep in the design and the cost of the building,” Counihan said.
Counihan anticipates needing a “a couple million dollars to get the building ready.” The majority of Happy Valley Compassion Center’s funding comes from investors, he said, though a few state grants are available to nonprofit medical marijuana organizations.
As a bonus, Counihan said the building is at a beautiful hilltop location.
“Potential future workers will definitely find it aesthetically pleasing,” he said.
Counihan said during town meetings that the organization’s goal is to provide anywhere from 12 to 24 local farmers with a job in an up-and-coming industry, a living wage and a benefits package.
However, Happy Valley Compassion Center is still seeking approval from the Massachusetts Department of Public Health. Counihan said he hopes to have a Provisional Certificate of Registration, which he said is needed to start growing medical marijuana, within the next few months.
“That’s really the ticket to begin construction,” he said.
To operate dispensaries, Happy Valley Compassion Center also needs a Final Certificate of Registration, which Counihan hopes to have in six months to a year.
Counihan, who is in the business of investing in start-up companies, said he and his partners first began discussing opening a medical marijuana organization in April 2015. Counihan wants to help patients who have ailments that can be treated with cannabis and build more awareness around medical uses of cannabis.
Counihan also said he wants to have a long-term partnership with Bernardston.
“We’ve told the town of Bernardston many times that we want them to be proud of us working in their town,” he said.