End of an era? Not so fast: Arva Flour Mill saved after sale to local businessman
The historic Arva Flour Mill will continue to operate after the 202-year-old mill was purchased by a local businessman.
In a release issued early Wednesday morning it was announced that local businessman Mark Rinker had purchased the Mill with a plan to keep it operating while looking at new ways to grow the business.
“It’s simple really, being at the Mill gives me joy. From a very young age I formed a bond with the property, the people and processes that make the Mill special,” said Mark Rinker in a statement sent to media.
Rinker says he is recently retired as a VP of Sale with a pharmacy automation company and that the timing was right for his new venture.
“Keeping the rich history and traditions of the Mill intact are as important to me as any commercial success,” said Rinker in his statement.
According to the media release Rinker intends to work closely with the Matthews family which has owned the Mill for the last century.
When the property went up for sale there was interest from as far away as China, but in the end local won out.
“We had a lot of interest from multiple parties all over the world who wanted to re-develop the land, but ultimately, Mark’s vision to respect and continue the legacy of what our family has built
over the last 100 years was most important to us,” said former owner Mike Matthews in a statement.
A vision for the future
With roughly 100 individual customers visiting the Mill every day Rinker says he will continue to honour and serve those customers while increasing retail distribution and a plan to grow the brand.
Among the ideas is updating equipment and new infrastructure for new projects.
One such project would be to mill gluten free flours in a separate building with dedicated equipment to prevent cross contamination.
Rinker says he also has a vision to partner long-term with a winery or distillery onsite.
Another plan is to have the property become a net zero carbon producer by utilizing the hydroelectric power from the dam to power the property.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'They needed people inside Air Canada:' Police announce arrests in Pearson gold heist
Police say one former and one current employee of Air Canada are among the nine suspects that are facing charges in connection with the gold heist at Pearson International Airport last year.
House admonishes ArriveCan contractor in rare parliamentary show of power
MPs enacted an extraordinary, rarely used parliamentary power on Wednesday, summonsing an ArriveCan contractor to appear before the House of Commons where he was admonished publicly and forced to provide answers to the questions MPs said he'd previously evaded.
Leafs star Auston Matthews finishes season with 69 goals
Auston Matthews won't be joining the NHL's 70-goal club this season.
Trump lawyers say Stormy Daniels refused subpoena outside a Brooklyn bar, papers left 'at her feet'
Donald Trump's legal team says it tried serving Stormy Daniels a subpoena as she arrived for an event at a bar in Brooklyn last month, but the porn actor, who is expected to be a witness at the former president's criminal trial, refused to take it and walked away.
Why drivers in Eastern Canada could see big gas price spikes, and other Canadians won't
Drivers in Eastern Canada face a big increase in gas prices because of various factors, especially the higher cost of the summer blend, industry analysts say.
Doug Ford calls on Ontario Speaker to reverse Queen's Park keffiyeh ban
Ontario Premier Doug Ford is calling on Speaker Ted Arnott to reverse a ban on keffiyehs at Queen's Park, describing the move as “needlessly” divisive.
'A living nightmare': Winnipeg woman sentenced following campaign of harassment against man after online date
A Winnipeg woman was sentenced to house arrest after a single date with a man she met online culminated in her harassing him for years, and spurred false allegations which resulted in the innocent man being arrested three times.
Woman who pressured boyfriend to kill his ex in 2000s granted absences from prison
A woman who pressured her boyfriend into killing his teenage ex more than a decade ago will be allowed to leave prison for weeks at a time.
Customers disappointed after email listing $60K Tim Hortons prize sent in error
Several Tim Horton’s customers are feeling great disappointment after being told by the company that an email stating they won a boat worth nearly $60,000 was sent in error.