Arkansas marijuana cultivation facility faces hefty fines,suspension and neighbor concerns

HOT SPRINGS ROCK (KATV) — A marijuana cultivation facility is in jeopardy of suspension and could have to pay over $15,000 of dollars in fines.

According to an order from the Alcoholic Beverage Control Division Leafology, a marijuana cultivation facility located in Hot Springs Arkansas, was found in violation of a number of charges including but not limited to:

• failure to maintain video surveillance for a ninety-day period
• failed to ensure cannabis odors were not perceptible from outside the licensed facility
• failure to properly utilize the inventory tracking system and could not locate 9,237 g of medical cannabis

The Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration said Leafology filed an appeal and noted that anytime a permit holder files an appeal, the company can continue operating up until a board hearing.

The company is scheduled for a hearing on October 18th where the ABC board can either decide to uphold the violations, including the fine and suspension, or overturn the decision.

Anytime a permit holder files an appeal, it results in a stay which allows the company to continue operating leading up to the Board meeting.

Phil Higdon, a resident who lives near the facility, said he reached out to the Alcoholic Beverage Control Board to share his concerns, along with 100 signatures from other neighbors asking for the facility to be relocated.

“My concerns are what we are dealing with on an everyday basis, 24/7,” Higdon said. “The stench from the marijuana that’s being cultivated, the 60 fans and the noise they make, and at night time how the security lights have everything lit up so bright.

Higdon had speculated that the approval of the cultivation facility could have been political for it to be built around surrounding homes and businesses and noted the attorney representing Leafology had invested interest in the company.

Charles Singleton, the facility’s attorney, responded to claims and said to his knowledge there was no political play when it came to approving the construction of the facility and confirmed that he has a 5 % interest in the company.

“I looked at it on the front end about 7 years ago when we started to try to put this business together [and] I couldn’t find anything saying I had a conflict of interest,” Singleton said. “I checked with the attorney ethics commission back then and they said they didn’t know of anything that would prohibit me from owning interest in the company and serving as the attorney.”

Singleton said the violation and complaints regarding odor were exacerbated by a winter storm in December of 2022 which caused some of their equipment to break.

“During that time our odor suppression system froze up during that period,” Singleton said. “Once the pipes froze up, there was an odor issue.”

Singleton said the company made efforts to order over 200 individual parts from the Netherlands but the shipment was delayed leading into March.

“From our perspective, it was caused by an act of God, we couldn’t control it,” Singleton said. “When the repairs were done we insulated the parts two or three times better than when they were originally constructed.”

Singleton said the company reached out to the apartments next door and other residents about the odor and they think the problem is fixed because they have not received any complaints thereafter.

Singleton said all other violations would be discussed in the hearing.

As for Higdon, he said he didn’t have much hope that the ABC would do the right thing but said he would keep fighting for the facility to relocate from the neighborhood.

“I hope I’ve got 20 years left in me and I’ll fight till the day I die,” Higdon said. “In my trust, there will be enough money in there for my children to fight it.”