The Nevis City Council passed two cannabis-related ordinances on Monday, August 12.

First, Ordinance 56 is an amendment to the City’s interim cannabis ordinance, effective July 10, 2023, which clarifies the City’s moratorium on cannabis businesses operating in the City until January 1, 2025.

Emily Mathisrud of the city’s Planning Board introduced the ordinance as a measure that gives the state time to create a regulatory framework for cannabis businesses while adapting to legislative changes passed by the state since last July.

The amended regulation adds the following definitions to the text adopted in 2023:

• Definitions of the terms “2024 Amendment”, “early grower”, “license pre-approval” and “medical cannabis business” for the purposes of the Regulation.
• Clarification that the “cannabis businesses” prohibited by the interim regulation include businesses that produce medical cannabis, are first-time growers, and receive pre-licensing approvals regardless of the amendment to the State’s Cannabis Law in 2024.
• Reference to the 2024 amendment in the section with citations to the relevant state laws.
• A statement stating that during the term of the moratorium, it will be a violation of the ordinance for any business, person or entity within the City to establish or operate a cannabis business, including the examples above.

Acting Mayor Sue Gray’s motion to approve the ordinance passed 4-0, with Mayor Jeanne Thompson absent.

Later, at Gray’s request, the Council also approved a resolution authorizing the publication of a summary of the regulation – a single paragraph summarizing how and why the regulation was changed, rather than the entire three-page text. This vote also ended 4-0.

Next, Ordinance 57 makes it illegal to consume cannabis flowers, cannabis products, lower potency hemp foods, and hemp-derived consumer products in public places in the city.

In its definition of public places, the ordinance excludes private residences, including their surrounding land and yards, private property that is generally not open to the public unless the owner has expressly prohibited a person from consuming cannabis on the property, and the grounds of an establishment or event with a license that allows on-site cannabis consumption.

The ordinance states that a violation of this ordinance is a misdemeanor punishable by court order, injunction or civil remedy, as well as by reporting the violation to the Office of Cannabis Management. It also authorizes the city government to consult with the city attorney to take any legal action necessary to ensure compliance with the ordinance.

City Council member Blair Reuther objected to the ordinance giving that power to the city government, arguing that the task should be left to law enforcement.

Reuther moved to hold the ordinance until absent Town Manager Dawn Veit could answer questions about it. He said the clause may be unnecessary and violates state law, and he believes further investigation is warranted.

Mathisrud said the city was relying on established state law in adopting the ordinance. Reuther called the ordinance’s language an example of the League of Minnesota Cities promoting a strong model for a city manager and encouraging aldermen to give up some of their power. “We have issues with individual freedom here,” he said.

Mathisrud said this was a bigger problem than the town of Nevis, to which Reuther replied, “That’s where it starts.”

Mathisrud read from a state law that empowers cities to pass an ordinance that punishes a person who illegally uses cannabis as a minor misdemeanor. “If you want to put it on hold, then do it,” she said. “I don’t know if you’re going to make any changes.”

“Well, I’m not going to vote for it,” Reuther replied. “I’d like to put it on hold just to research it a little more.”

Reuther’s motion was rejected without support. Other council members voted to continue the ordinance.

Kay Moen, an employee at the city’s liquor store, reported that condensation on the pipes in the building’s ceiling continues to ruin the ceiling tiles, and she is soliciting bids to fix the problem.

Moen asked the city council to reconsider its plans for the future of the building. Reuther pestered Moen with questions about municipal maintenance and operations.

Moen said a new cooler has been ordered and she expects it to be installed in September.

She reported that she was unable to provide an estimate for repairing the elevator to the basement storage and said that installing a new elevator could cost around $70,000. This led to further discussions about whether to continue maintaining the old building or plan for a new location.

Moen said the municipality’s new cash register system is not yet operational, but lottery sales have begun.

Reuther renewed his previous request to see balance sheets detailing profits and losses of municipal banks. “We have a report on how much gross profit was made this year, but we did not have a financial report,” he said.

Council member John Carrier stated that council members attending the budget meeting discussed a desire to see a comparison of net profit in 2023 to year-to-date profit in 2024. Assistant City Clerk Kimberly Wright said she was unaware of this, and City Manager Dawn Veit was absent. Council members asked for this to be added to the council’s September agenda.

Council members also discussed the salary of the liquor store manager, which is considered an important step in hiring a new manager.

After discussing the city attorney’s advice not to split the position into two positions with different pay depending on whether the employee works as a manager or a bartender, Councilwoman Teresa Leshovsky’s motion to offer a negotiable starting wage of $28 per hour passed 4-0.