By MATT LINDSEY

CANTON -- The St. Lawrence Brewing Company is in the process of ceasing beer-making operations due to financial problems.

The monetary struggles can be attributed to a competitive industry, according to Patrick J. Kelly, executive director of the St. Lawrence County Industrial Development Agency.

“The industry has gotten competitive recently and it’s hard to make headway,” Kelly said. “It is a quickly changing marketplace.”

Kelly says the business did not fail because of a “lack of effort or product quality.”

The beer-making company opened at 19 Commerce Lane in Canton in August 2013 and was owned by Ken Hebb. He also owned the Blackbird Café in Canton, which closed earlier this spring.

The Taproom at St. Lawrence Brewing Company has already closed and production of beer will end soon.

“We are working with Ken on the process of handling inventory,” he said.

The SLC IDA, Adirondack Economic Development Corp. and North Country Alliance helped finance The St. Lawrence Brewing Company.

A total around $400,000 was borrowed over time for the business; $350,000 remains on the loans, Kelly said.

The IDA is working through the process of securing collateral, which includes machines and equipment, Kelly said.

Some of the owed money is from lease and equipment payments which were not made, he added.

Kelly said the IDA is in the preliminary stages of deciding the next step.

“We are exploring options for economic development,” he said.

The decision is whether to sell all of the equipment or to try and find a suitable replacement to continue running a brewery at the industrial park building.

“We want to see all projects succeed…but with a responsibility to taxpayers, we have a responsibility to recover our funds and try to return as much value as we can.”

Attempts to contact owner Ken Hebb were unsuccessful.