Cannabis cultivation facility proposed for vacant Wheeling building
After a plan to open a cannabis cultivation facility on Hintz Road in Wheeling fell through, a different company has proposed opening the same type of business in the same building.
A Chicago-based limited liability company called Mae Lee Tinker has requested a special use permit from the village to operate a cannabis business at 160 W. Hintz Road, documents indicate. The site is a vacant, 59,446-square-foot industrial building.
A company called NBCG Partners received a permit to operate the same type of facility there in 2021, as well as an extension last year. But the operation never began.
"They simply never followed through with their special use," Village Manager Jon Sfondilis said.
Using an Urbana address, Mae Lee Tinker has been awarded a cannabis craft grow license by the Illinois Department of Agriculture, state records indicate.
Mae Lee Tinker's owners, Nishant Reddy and Simmon Saraf, co-founded a cannabis-focused investment company called Satya Capital. Based in California, documents indicate, Satya Capital operates cannabis flower brands called A Golden State and PHASES.
A Mae Lee Tinker representative couldn't be reached for comment.
The Wheeling building being eyed for the growing facility last was occupied by AGSCO Corp., an industrial mineral and blasting equipment distributor. It moved to Libertyville in 2021.
The proposed business will employ between 20 and 40 people who will work in shifts, documents indicate.
Wheeling's plan commission, which advises the village board on development issues, will meet Wednesday to discuss Mae Lee Tinker's proposal. The meeting is set for 6:30 p.m. at village hall, 2 Community Blvd.
It'll ultimately be up to the village board to decide whether the company gets a special use permit and some desired exceptions to local zoning codes.