Medical Marijuana campus proposed on 35 acres of Northampton County farmland
Lehigh Township officials are reviewing plans for a medical marijuana campus on 35 acres of farmland along Route 145.
Though not yet licensed by the state, the facility is projected to created at least 80 high-paying grower/processor jobs in addition to three jobs at a dispensary on-site and another dozen or more at a drive-through restaurant also proposed as part of the project, a partner on the plan told lehighvalleylive.
The company behind the proposal is a Pennsylvania general partnership called LURRS, based at 499 Riverview Drive in the township. That’s also the address of Lehigh Engineering Associates Inc. The partner who provided details to a reporter on the project is Mark Leuthe, president of the engineering company.
A non-disclosure agreement prevents immediately identifying the operator of the campus or the restaurant, Leuthe said.
LURRS has owned the property where the campus is proposed since 2000, according to Northampton County property records. It’s located northwest of the intersection of Riverview Drive (Route 145) and Birch Drive, just south of Walnutport.
The plans filed with the township call for subdividing the property into 18 lots of one acre and larger, with proposed construction of 16 medical marijuana grower/processor buildings of up to 20,000 square feet each, a dispensary of up to 3,000 square feet and the fast food restaurant with drive-through.
The Lehigh Township Planning Commission last Monday voted 4-1 to recommend approval of a special exception for the project, with member Bill Jones opposed. The township’s zoning hearing board has the final say on the special exception, and is scheduled to take it up Aug. 10, said township Zoning Officer Liz Amato.
In addition to the special exception, the project needs land development approval from the township board of supervisors also following a review by the planning commission, Amato said.
Leuthe projects construction taking about two years.
The Pennsylvania Department of Health also would have to issue a permit for the proposal. There are no grower/processor permits currently awarded within Northampton County, the department says.
