Cresco Labs Agrees to $50M Sale-Leaseback of Illinois Cultivation Facility

CHICAGO—Locally-based Cresco Labs reports it has closed on a sale-leaseback deal with GreenAcreage Real Estate Corp. of New York City for its Lincoln, IL cultivation facility in a deal valued at $50 million.

Concurrent with the closing of the sale, Cresco has agreed to enter into a long-term, triple-net lease agreement with GreenAcreage and will continue to operate the property as a licensed medical and recreational cannabis cultivation and processing facility.

Cresco’s Lincoln property is expected to be 220,000 square feet when completed, making it the largest such facility in Illinois. With more production capacity than any other cannabis company in the state, Cresco is positioned to grow its already leading 25% market share, the firm states.

“This agreement is representative of the comprehensive approach to capital planning that we anticipate will ensure our future success, while enabling us to grow our footprint both rapidly and responsibly,” says Cresco Labs CEO and co-founder Charlie Bachtell. “We have several opportunities right in front of us, including in our home market of Illinois, which will be moving forward with adult-use legalization on January 1st and is projected to reach $2 billion to $4 billion in annual sales at maturity. Illinois represents one of the largest opportunities in U.S. cannabis…”

The deal for the Lincoln, IL cultivation facility follows up Cresco Labs announcement in late November of sale-and-leaseback agreements for its Marshall, MI and Yellow Springs, OH facilities for $38 million.

Cresco’s balance sheet at the end of the third quarter included a cash and cash equivalents balance of $73.7 million, a working capital position of $144.6 million and zero debt.