Few buildings exemplify a town’s ups and downs as much the sprawling brown-brick factory in Smiths Falls, Ontario, that began life in the 1960s as the home of Hershey Canada.
Twice the town has risen with the fortunes of the building’s successive owners: Hershey, and then a prominent cannabis grower. And twice it has been let down by them. This week, the town received a third shot at economic redemption when Hershey, in a surprising move, said it was returning.
The building’s continuing drama has also meant that Smiths Falls has lured me out repeatedly for various reasons, personal and journalistic, over the years.
Being a parent prompted my first visit; few families in Eastern Ontario escaped at least one trip to the chocolate factory. Our now-adult sons had scant interest in what was its main attraction for me: the self-guided tour that allowed visitors to peer down from elevated windows at pristine white conveyor belts moving battalions of peanut butter cups and chocolate bars.
Maybe Hershey will make Pot infused chocolates!
