Marijuana REIT buys Florida property for $13 million in leaseback deal with Ayr

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Innovative Industrial Properties, a San Diego-based real estate investment trust (REIT) focused on the cannabis industry, acquired a $13 million industrial space in Florida that will be leased to multistate operator Ayr Wellness.

As part of the deal, Innovative Industrial Properties (IIP) plans to reimburse Miami-based Ayr up to $30 million for the redevelopment of a 98,000-square-foot building on an Ocala property that will be converted to a marijuana cultivation facility, according to a news release.

The build-out adds to Ayr’s growing footprint in Florida, where the MSO operates 64 medical marijuana dispensaries and 745,000 square feet of production capacity.

In November, voters will decide on a ballot measure to legalize adult use in the nation’s third-most-populous state.

Nationally, Ayr’s vertically integrated operation covers eight states, including 18 production facilities and 91 retail outlets.

IIP and Ayr have a similar lease arrangement on an 11,000-square-foot processing facility in Ohio, the release noted.

The REIT last month announced a $40 million acquisition and leaseback deal for a Tilt Holdings marijuana production facility in Taunton, Massachusetts.

IIP shares trade as IIPR on the New York Stock Exchange.

Ayr’s shares trade as AYR.A on the Canadian Securities Exchange and AYRWF on the over-the-counter markets.