Greenville council approves ordinances to allow and regulate marihuana retail establishments
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Summary
The Greenville City Council on July 16 adopted two ordinances to permit marihuana retailers in a new North Lafayette zoning district and to establish municipal licensing and operational rules for adult-use marihuana businesses; both passed 5–1 with Councilperson Lehman opposing.
The Greenville City Council on July 16 adopted two ordinances to allow and regulate marihuana retail establishments in the city.
The council approved Ordinance 24-10, an amendment to Chapter 46 (Zoning) creating a North Lafayette District to permit medical provisioning centers and marihuana retailers with site development, signage and buffering requirements. The ordinance sets a 200-foot separation between provisioning centers or marihuana retailers and a 1,000-foot buffer from schools and licensed commercial day-care facilities, and requires that signs not advertise specific marihuana products, prices or specials.
Council also adopted Ordinance 24-11, an amendment to Chapter 10 that updates municipal licensing and operational definitions for adult-use marihuana establishments. The ordinance authorizes municipal licenses for growers (Class A–C), processors, secure transporters, safety compliance facility establishments and retailers; prohibits state-defined “special licenses” and marihuana microbusinesses within the city; and conditions municipal licenses on possession of a current state operating license and compliance with state rules administered by the Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs.
Both ordinances reference state statutes and frameworks as written in the ordinances, including the Michigan Regulation and Taxation of Marihuana Act (MRTMA), the Medical Marihuana Facilities Licensing Act (MMFLA), the Marihuana Tracking Act (MTA), and rules promulgated by the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs. Each ordinance includes a provision that it becomes effective 15 days after publication in a newspaper of general circulation as required by the ordinance language.
Councilperson Cunliffe moved to approve Ordinance 24-10, with Councilperson Moss seconding. Councilperson Moss moved to approve Ordinance 24-11, with Councilperson Cunliffe seconding. Both measures were adopted with five ayes (Cunliffe, Linton, Johnson, Barrus and Moss), one nay (Lehman) and one absence (Scoby).
The ordinances place zoning and municipal licensing rules on the same timeline: municipal licenses must be accompanied by the corresponding state operating license and are subject to the city’s special land-use and site-plan processes. The ordinances also require municipal license holders to permit city inspections and make municipal licenses prominently displayed at licensed premises.
The council record shows no public comment during the hearings. The ordinances will be published in a local newspaper and take effect according to the publication schedule laid out in the adopted text.