Chris Webber’s Webber Wellness Compound officially broke ground on Tuesday and will include marijuana operations, a cultivation, and training facility, a dispensary, and also a cannabis consumption lounge.
The compound’s training initiative would be run by Cookies U which will train students for various jobs including cultivating and sale of marijuana.
Cookies U is a job training and placement program that recruits students from underrepresented and minority communities. Webber that it would be a three-month intensive program that would train students for a wide range of jobs.
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Webber shared that record expungement offices have been setup in the facility for supporting those in dire need of services.
The company is held by entrepreneur Lavetta Willis and Players Only Holdings, a business co-found by Webber.
In an interview, Chris Webber said it is his biggest priority in life to help those who have been disrupted by cannabis. With this initiative, he hopes to do a bit of mending to help those affected by drug laws.
He added, “but I need to be home to make sure I can do the larger projects. It feels so good to come home and to be a part of all the great things again.”
This news comes after Willis, Webber and Jason Wild of JW Asset Management created a $100M private equity cannabis fund to invest in brands and businesses in the Black community.
The first phase of the construction of Webber’s ambitious project will be completed by March 2022. However, no timeline has been shared about the phase two expansion.
Gage Growth Corp. will be the distributor for Webber and Willis ‘Players Only”-branded cannabis products. The compound will be located just off Michigan Avenue at 2599 22nd St.
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Michigan makes a return to Michigan with The Webber Wellness Compound. However, the former NBA star claims that he has been doing projects in the city for the last 20 years. He said he is glad to be a part of great things again and to be back home again.
Born in Detroit, Webber attended the Detroit Country Day High School and played basketball at the University of Michigan. He then went to the NBA and played for teams such as the Detroit Pistons, the Sacramento Kings, and the Golden State Warriors.