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Behind the scenes: Missouri marijuana farms prepare for start of recreational marijuana sales

Published

2 years ago

February 5, 2023

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VIENNA, Mo. – With legalized recreational marijuana now available for dispensaries to sell, many wonder what ripple effects this will bring.

In the small town of Vienna, Missouri, business is growing.

“Over the course of the next 8 or 9 weeks, these plants will get about this tall,” said Ben Fredenberg, the director of cultivation for OG Yields. “We’re really start to develop the flower that everyone knows.”

Marijuana is grown inside OG Yields for medical and now, recreational purposes. As demand increases for their 30-plus strains, they have it down to a science.

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“We let the buds grow a little more, ripen up, and then we come in and we cut the plant at the base,” Fredenberg said. “We hang it upside down to dry, and then we go through a process we call bucking, which is basically just breaking these flowers from the stem.”

Thousands of plants mature from seedling to fully blossomed flower, which contains THC. It gets trimmed and packaged, and 2,000 pounds of marijuana products are then ready to ship.

“We don’t know what pesticides or spray are on the black market, here everything is stringently tested,” said Nick Rinella, CEO of OG Yields. “So by the time it hits the dispensaries, you know you have a safe, tested product that you can enjoy.”

The 18-acre facility has been operational since 2020. They provide products to their three dispensaries, including Hippo’s, which has one in Chesterfield, as well as more than 70 other dispensaries throughout the state.

Roughly 10% of Vienna’s population was employed. These workers are making about 20 percent more than the average job in town.

“There’s an opportunity for us to expand and to pull in additional employees from the area,” Rinella said. “So we could potentially double our employee count in the next 12 months.”

Tax money from sales benefits cities, many of which are bracing for a wave of new dispensaries looking to take advantage of a new market.

“It’s extremely exciting to see from the beginning to where it goes now,” Rinella said. “We’re pumped up to see what the future is going to hold.”

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Man attacks Jeff Co. deputy with screwdriver during attempted arrest

Published

2 years ago

July 11, 2023

Natural Bridge

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JEFFERSON COUNTY, Mo. – Two people are behind bars after a man reportedly attacked a Jefferson County deputy with a screwdriver during an attempted arrest over the weekend.

Prosecutors have charged Nicholas Davis, 47, and Amanda Davis, 45, of Dittmer, Missouri, with felonies in the investigation.

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The alleged attack followed a traffic stop of a driver in the 9500 block of Jones Creek Road on July 7, though the driver was not Nicholas or Amanda.

According to court documents obtained by FOX 2, Nicholas reportedly came out of his nearby home, yelled at a deputy and started approaching him while holding a screwdriver. The deputy initially ordered Nicholas to back away, then used pepper spray.

Per court documents, the deputy attempted to arrest Nicholas, who then struck him in the chest with the screwdriver. Amanda reportedly approached the deputy and pulled him away from Nicholas before both ran inside their home.

The Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office says the situation prompted an hours-long standoff involving negotiators, a SWAT team and a K-9 deputy. The situation led to Nicholas refusing warnings and being bitten by a K-9.

Nicholas and Amanda are both jailed in the Jefferson County Jail without bond. Nicholas is charged with first-degree assault on a special victim and armed criminal action. Amanda is charged with resisting/interfering with arrest.

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St. Louis Public Schools superintendent to be sworn in

Published

2 years ago

July 11, 2023

Natural Bridge

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ST. LOUIS — The new St. Louis schools superintendent will be officially sworn into office today. Dr. Keisha Scarlett took over the job in July after the retirement of Dr. Kelvin Adams. She was assistant superintendent in the Seattle Public School District. The installation ceremony is at 6:15 p.m. before the regular school board meeting.

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Gas tanker crashes into St. Louis Metro transit center

Published

2 years ago

July 11, 2023

Natural Bridge

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ST. LOUIS — A gasoline tanker truck crashed into a Metro transit center near Riverview and Hall Streets early Tuesday morning and knocked over a power pole. The pole is leaning on other power lines. Police have the area blocked off here because there is a downed power line. Ameren and Metro crews are also on the scene.

The incident happened around 12:30 a.m. It’s still unclear exactly what caused the crash, but we do that there was a second vehicle somehow involved. The airbags on that second vehicle did deploy.

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Police at the scene have not been able to give us a lot of details. Metro officials tell FOX 2 that the transit center here is operating this morning for passengers and buses. Access to certain areas will be limited here as clean up unfolds.

A Metro spokesperson says half of the station isn’t being used right now because of safety issues. It isn’t impacting overall bus operations, everything is just happening on the other side of transit center.

The extent of the damage to the actual transit center is still unclear, but I’m told it does not appear to be extreme. A Metro spokesperson tells me there were no injuries to any metro workers or passengers. The tanker driver also was not injured.

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