Two 1992 Ada High School classmates, Troy Erickson and Billy Watterson, using the name Ada Boyz Holdings, LLC, intend to develop a distillery with a bar and restaurant and a greenhouse for growing hemp on a site in the Ada industrial park, bordering North Avenue.

The intended land purchase required action in two special Ada meetings. First, Ada council, passed an ordinance on Oct. 17, transferring the property to the Ada Community Improvement Corp. (CIC). Next, CIC on Oct. 23 passed a motion entering a real estate agreement with Ada Boyz Holdings, LLC.

The village legislation opens the door for Ada Boyz Holdings, LLC, to proceed with the purchase of approximately 10 acres in the industrial park, at a price of $7,217.54 per acre.

Erickson attended the CIC meeting and explained the two projects, which will go on the same property, but will develop independently of one another.

Distillery
Erickson and Watterson are working with an architect to finalize plans for a distillery they will call State 17 Distillery. The name is based on the fact that Ohio is the 17th state in the U.S.

The  distillery, bar and restaurant project may take from two to three years to develop, according to Erickson, as the project is still in the infant stage.

It is the hope of the developers to eventually produce whisky, bourbon and possibly gin on the property.

He told CIC members that Watterson is a partner in Burnt Church Distillery, located in Bluffton, South Carolina.

“We plan to build a restaurant that has a family atmosphere,” said Erickson. “We love Ada and believe in the community. We want Ada and Hardin County to be a destination.”

In addition to being Ada HS grads, both are 1996 graduates of the University of Findlay.

Greenhouse
Erickson and Watterson expect the Ohio legislature to soon decriminalize hemp and license hemp for cultivation. Ohio Senate Bill 57 covers this pending legislation.

Upon passage of that bill, Ada Boyz Holdings, LLC, intends to construct a 3,300-square-foot greenhouse, measuring 35 by 96 feet for hemp cultivation.

The hemp grown in Ada will be sold to farmers and dispensaries in Ohio, where it will then be processed into CBD oil.

The oil has a range of potential health benefits and uses. These include reducing pain, soothing anxiety, fighting chronic diseases, improving mood, eliminating depression, preventing inflammatory arthritis, protecting the immune system, balancing the metabolism, aiding sleep disorders, and healing the skin, among others.

CBD oil can also be used in many different ways and has a variety of applications for natural health.