MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) – As Minneapolis seeks to implement rules that will regulate marijuana sales Across the city, the City Council passed its first set of wide-ranging ordinances that would govern retailers.

What we know

At the Oct. 31 Minneapolis City Council meeting, members approved a Cannabis Commerce Regulation Ordinance aimed at the city’s recreational use of marijuana, as well as its production and other aspects related to commercial sales.

According to the ordinance, the policy approach to cannabis legalization in Minneapolis emphasizes “safety, equity, and accessibility, with the goal of creating a permissive but safety-conscious framework.”

“We shouldn’t be more restrictive with cannabis than we are with tobacco and liquor stores,” said council member Katie Cashman, who said she plans to propose new spacing requirements for tobacco stores in the future. “It will also help fill vacant storefronts, and I know that’s a goal for many of us.”

In July, the Office of Cannabis Management (OCM) presented its first draft of regulatory proposals this will govern how businesses operate within the state. The OCM will be the governing body responsible for regulating recreational marijuana as well as retail. licenses are distributed.

THE 111-page document is the CMO’s first proposal and will be used to solicit public input on how the industry should operate as companies receive licenses to operate adult-use cannabis, medical cannabis and low potency edible hemp within the state.

Minnesota requires all cities to license cannabis retailers, but with the option of placing a cap on the number of cannabis retailers at one per 12,500 residents. Communities across the state will be able to decide whether or not to institute a cap in their area.

Each city and municipality in Minnesota will have the opportunity to write their own regulations within the overall guiding structure.

Trade and production restrictions

The proposed use standards and zoning regulations include spacing requirements for cannabis retailers, designed to ensure businesses “do not negatively impact their surrounding neighbors or create a nuisance.”

A dispensary will not be allowed to operate within 300 feet of a school – grades K-12. The same distance applies to any daycare.
State law currently allows cities to prohibit the operation of a cannabis business within 1,000 feet of a school.

Before approval, council member Aurin Chowdhury proposed an amendment that would ease restrictions on cannabis businesses that do not operate at least 300 feet apart.

“Social equity applicants have been pre-approved at the state level to get the first full bite of the cannabis apple,” Chowdhury said. “This change ensures that the existing hemp retailers we already know within our communities will be protected moving forward. This is about making sure the retailers in the city of Minneapolis are successful…We want to promote them over the big, multi-state companies. »

Chowdhurry highlighted other restrictions already in place to avoid “cannabis hot zones.”

Before the vote, board member Linea Palmisano challenged the reduction of a school’s restrictive distance from 500 feet to 300 feet, against the recommendation of the Minneapolis Public Schools district. Palmisano said Seattle has a 1,000-foot requirement, San Francisco’s restriction is 600 feet and Chicago’s is 500 feet.

Other restrictions include that a dispensary must be located at least 1,000 feet from all existing pawn shops, alternative financial institutions and missions, and not share a common entrance with a non-cannabis use. Trash cans must also be placed at public entrances.

Production and processing facilities will be limited to 5,000 square feet in the city, while shipping and warehousing activities cannot exceed 5,000 square feet of the gross floor plan of any facility. All processing, sorting and storage must take place entirely in a completely enclosed building.

Portable and temporary signs, backlit signs, and freestanding signs will be prohibited for all cannabis businesses.

In mixed-use residential neighborhoods, drive-through facilities will be prohibited.

Growth, culture

Growing cannabis would require an approved structure and would be prohibited in makeshift greenhouses, hoop houses, tents or similar temporary enclosed spaces.

Light and glare from interior lighting must be confined to the interior of the structure where indoor cultivation takes place, and overhead lighting will be prohibited.

Cannabis cultivation businesses will be required to submit an odor control and air filtration plan that will be implemented prior to the issuance of the final building inspection, as well as throughout its operation.

License limit

The proposed regulations for Minneapolis do not place a cap on dispensary licenses.

The order states that not limiting licenses will “give social equity applicants and those transitioning to the legal market sufficient time to enter the industry.”

The order also states that imposing a cap could create a rush of competition, potentially disadvantaging individuals who need time to obtain financing and access commercial technical assistance.

Use

Throughout Downtown, public marijuana use will be limited to rooftops unless the venue meets minimum height and floor space standards.

Smoking of marijuana, including for product sampling purposes, is prohibited indoors.

However, the city acknowledged that its zoning regulations cannot control where a product is consumed once a customer leaves the business.

Over time, the city recognizes that code revisions could change due to state or federal laws, as well as additional research.