What happened to Chris Webber's $175 million cannabis venture? Recalling his 2023 comments about stalled beginnings
In 2021, NBA veteran Chris Webber, who spent 15 years in the NBA from 1993-2008, announced a $175 cannabis venture in his home city of Detroit. The announcement coincided with the legalization of recreational marijuana use in Georgia and various other states across the US. While federally, cannabis is still illegal, states have continued to legalize recreational marijuana.
Since the announcement, however, Chris Webber's plans have hit a snag. After breaking ground in 2021, the expectation was that the first phase of building would be completed by the end of the first quarter of 2022. Due to oversaturation in the Michigan cannabis industry, however, the price of cannabis plummeted, leaving Webber in limbo.
In an interview with Crain's Detroit in 2023, the NBA vet spoke about the endeavor and where things stand as of today:
"The cannabis industry has really shifted in Michigan. Since the landscape has changed, we’ve had to adjust because we would not be smart to go with that plan.
"I am from Detroit and love the city, the environment, and the people, but this would not be the best time for the community or us in Detroit to have a profitable outcome.”
Looking further at Chris Webber's $175 million one-of-a-kind cannabis venture in Detroit
The initial plans for Chris Webber's $175 million cannabis venture primarily consisted of a massive state-of-the-art facility unlike any other. The facility was set to have a training area to help individuals get jobs in the industry.
In addition, the facility was also set to have programs to get criminal records expunged and help trainees get GED certifications. The facility was set to have a 180,000-square-foot area for growing, harvesting and drying marijuana plants.
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The facility was also expected to have an area where cannabis could be consumed on-site, as well as a fully-fledged and licensed dispensary to sell marijuana.
With the price of cannabis in the state plummeting in recent years, Webber and his business partners are planning to revise the business plan. Given the changes in the cannabis industry in Michigan, the revised plan is expected to include a more trimmed-down facility.
As Webber explained in an interview with Markets Insider, he's confident that the facility will be able to secure a dispensary license, which would create revenue. When that happens, however, he isn't sure. Despite that he made clear he doesn't view any of the hurdles as a problem.
While many would be frustrated by the lack of movement over the past few years, Chris Webber explained that the endeavor is a "labor of love".