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A proposed entertainment center that was expected to host activities like go-karts and bowling is no longer coming to St. Cloud. Instead, a cannabis cultivation facility might take its place at 12 McLeland Road.
Trantina Properties had the land rezoned last April to allow an entertainment center to be built. At the time, the company was working with Rice Companies to bring the project to fruition.
On Tuesday night, James Trantina III, Trantina Properties owner, appeared at the St. Cloud Planning Commission meeting.
“We were just gonna do a family project there and just with the economy and with everything going on, we just feel that it’s the right fit for that area,” Trantina said on Feb. 10 during the meeting.
Trantina told the planning commissioners there’s more interest in selling the property to someone to remodel. In an effort to make the facility more appealing to buyers, Trantina requested it be rezoned back to its previous industrial zoning.
The zoning request comes as Grow One, LLC looks to purchase the facility for a cannabis cultivation facility, according to an economic impact analysis performed by the Center for Policy Research and Community Engagement at St. Cloud State University.
If the cannabis project comes to fruition, it would directly create at least 85 full-time jobs with an average wage of about $63,000, according to the study. These positions range from cultivation positions, averaging around $56,500 a year, to management roles, averaging $155,000 a year. These positions come as St. Cloud State University builds out its cannabis program, a move that gained traction in 2024.
It is also expected to generate $631,000 in annual tax revenue and an economic output of $19.6 million.
Greater St. Cloud President NeTia Bauman supported the Grow One, LLC project in an email she wrote to the city. She said it would bring economic benefits with a lower impact to civilian life compared to many traditional industrial businesses.
“From a land-use perspective, the facility is more secure and has a lower impact than many traditional industrial operations,” Bauman wrote in the email. “It involves no outdoor activity, minimal truck traffic, no emissions visible to the public, and security systems that exceed standard industrial requirements. As a result, proximity to schools or other community uses does not introduce additional risk or interaction concerns.”
The project’s buildout would also benefit the trade industry, according to planning commission documents. Renovations could cost nearly $6.1 million for services like DVAC, concrete, plumbing and other specialty services. The construction phase’s economic output is expected to be about $8.82 million, considering both direct and indirect factors, such as retail purchases by tradespeople.
Planning Commissioner Clare Richards said she’s excited by the potential economic impact shown by the study.
“It (the economic impact analysis) made me very excited that we can attract these types of opportunities to the region,” Richards said at the meeting.
Grow One, LLC’s proposal comes after the building sat vacant for about four years. It was previously the Fingerhut / CompuCredit call center.
The proposed cannabis facility hinges on the St. Cloud City Council approving the zoning change, which the planning commission unanimously voted in favor of.
Grow One, LLC is based in Waite Park, according to the Office of the Minnesota Secretary of State. It filed as a business on July 30.
Corey Schmidt covers politics and public safety for the St. Cloud Times. He can be reached at [email protected].
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