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Waite Park planning commission recommends zoning updates to accommodate cannabis businesses
Summary
The Waite Park Planning Commission voted to recommend zoning ordinance amendments that define categories of cannabis-related businesses and clarify where they can operate; the measure now goes to the city council for consideration ahead of Minnesota's expected retail start date.
On Dec. 10, 2024, the Waite Park Planning Commission voted to recommend updates to the city's zoning ordinance intended to define and direct where different types of cannabis-related businesses may operate in the city. The motion to forward the proposed regulations to the city council passed by voice vote.
City staff (Speaker 3) told the commission that changes to state law require local zoning reviews and that the proposed amendments "call out specifically the ... different classifications of the cannabis related businesses," a set the staff described as "about a dozen or so." Staff said the Office of Cannabis Management (OCM) will license multiple categories — retail dispensaries, testing facilities, labs, transport and other ancillary uses — and recommended the planning commission make a positive recommendation to the council.
The proposed updates aim to reduce ambiguity about which business districts should host which cannabis-related functions. "We felt it best to recommend updating our zoning ordinance to call out specifically the ... different classifications of the cannabis related businesses," Speaker 3 said, adding that staff had prepared the draft with the city attorney and reviewed it with the council in prior work sessions.
Commissioners and members of the public questioned details about buffers and retail operations. Speaker 4 asked, "They made no stipulation about how close it can be to a school," prompting Speaker 3 to say the city council "was to not include buffer requirements." Speaker 2 asked whether a cannabis retailer could sell other products; Speaker 3 responded that cannabis businesses are expected to be "solely cannabis" and suggested that co-location would likely require separate entrances, drawing an analogy to how liquor sales are handled at some grocery locations.
The commission's recommendation is procedural: it forwards the zoning text to the city council for final consideration. Speaker 3 said the item is scheduled for the council meeting on Monday, Dec. 16; if adopted, the city expects to have its ordinance in place ahead of the Jan. 1, 2025 date staff cited for anticipated retail sales, though staff also noted possible state licensure delays and said the city would need to handle any applications that arrive during a gap.
The motion to recommend approval was moved by Speaker 4 and seconded by Speaker 2; the commission voted in favor and closed the public hearing the same evening. The council will consider the recommendation at its next meeting.
