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[dropcap class=”kp-dropcap”]G[/dropcap]rand Rapids leaders have chosen to opt into Michigan’s recreational cannabis market and reap the benefits. In recent months, city commissioners formally opted in as hundreds of other communities took a drastically different route.

On Oct. 8, the Grand Rapids City Commission approved an ordinance adopting Chapter 105 of Title VII of the City Code entitled “Marihuana Related Municipal Licensing.” On the same day, the commission amended the city’s Marihuana Parks Waiver Policy, clarifying that the commission’s role is to approve or deny particular park waiver requests. The waiver policy specifies that businesses must be located 1,000 feet away from parks and other sensitive areas. The goal was to approve adult-use license applications before the state-imposed deadline that took place on Nov. 1, and city leaders were able to achieve the goal with a few weeks to spare.

Fittingly, the city ordinance specifies a license issuance date set for April 20, 2020. By providing a six-month window, the ordinance timeline will give city leaders an ample amount of time to create the license application, fee structure and approval process. It will also allow for city staff to research land-use impacts and amend the city’s zoning ordinance to accommodate for recreational cannabis businesses.

“The City Commission approved a licensing ordinance on Oct. 8,” Landon Bartley, senior planner for the city of Grand Rapids told CULTURE. “The ordinance went into effect on Oct. 19. The ordinance requires a local license for all cannabis facility types, including medical and recreational, starting in six months.” Obviously, businesses will also need to receive a license at the state level from the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs.

“We will develop and adopt a land-use ordinance over the next few months. This is expected to go to the Planning Commission in early 2020. We also will be developing application paperwork for the licenses over the same time period.”

 

The November elections were a busy time for cannabis reform in Michigan. Over 1,300 communities in the state voted to opt out of recreational cannabis sales before the state’s deadline arrived. Fortunately,  however, leaders in Grand Rapids saw the value in commercializing cannabis sales and how it can boost the local economy.

The ordinance takes effect when the six-month licensing period sunsets. “Medical cannabis facilities that have already received land-use approval from the Planning Commission can use that approval as a temporary license until that point,” Bartley added. “This also is when we can begin to accept license applications for all marijuana facilities as well as recreational marijuana land-use applications.”

Grand Rapids officials recently approved a permit for Colorado-based cannabis company Terrapin Care Station in late-October. Terrapin Care Station will open a cultivation and processing facility at a location that was formerly Kid’s Food Basket, although the area is no longer near sensitive areas with children. Many more approvals are expected in subsequent months.

The work is far from being done, with more details to be ironed out over the next couple months. In the meantime, Bartley said, “We will develop and adopt a land-use ordinance over the next few months. This is expected to go to the Planning Commission in early 2020. We also will be developing application paperwork for the licenses over the same time period.”

By making the choice to embrace recreational cannabis, Grand Rapids sets an example for smaller cities in the state that are waiting to see what happens when recreational cannabis sales begin. Grand Rapids is taking the initiative while other communities are dropping the ball.

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