Construction of a new whiskey distillery in St. Clair Township will begin later than initially anticipated, but Mayor Jeff Agar remains excited about the project and its economic spin-off.
Diageo announced plans in 2022 for a 400-acre plant to produce 10.5 million proof gallons annually for its Crown Royal Canadian Whisky brand. At that time, the construction phase was expected to be complete in 2025.
"We remain committed to our investment and developing our operations in Lambton County’s St. Clair Township," said a Diageo spokesperson in an emailed statement. "Based on the evolving nature of our broader business and a focus on [productivity], we have planned on building the new facility through several phases, the first of which will be warehousing and substation construction."
The company anticipates having warehouses operational in 2026. Once completed, Diageo will begin planning the next phase of building the distillery and blending operations.
Mayor Agar said he anticipated adjustments to the timeline and has been assuring residents that the project is still expected to move forward.
"It takes time and I realize that," he said.
Agar said he recently met with Diageo representatives to go over an update.
"They confirmed everything's good, they just had to do some design changes and now they're going to go in stages," Agar said. "They're going to start with the warehousing first and hopefully, that gets going in the fall."
Agar said when construction does start, he doesn't expect there to be impacts to traffic in the area of Moore Line, near Highway 40. He also hopes to see a sign erected soon to notify residents of the upcoming work.
"I said it will really help," Agar said. "I get all kinds of questions all of the time and it would be nice if there were a sign up there just to say 'we're still coming.'"
Agar said the distillery will make a great addition to the municipality.
"They're a great bunch to deal with. I've never met people like them. They're really nice, friendly, and they know what they're doing," Agar said.
"It's a real specialty operation that's coming and I think it's going to be great for all involved."
A Diageo spokesperson said the company promotes growth in the communities where they operate. They purchase about 5.5 million bushels of corn, barley, and rye every year from Canadian farmers.