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<br />Item No: 7F <br />Meeting Date: May 9, 2011 <br />Type of Business: Council Business <br />City of Mounds View Staff Report <br />To: Honorable Mayor and City Council <br />From: James Ericson, City Administrator <br />Item Title/Subject: Approval of Emergency Interim Ordinance 859, an <br />Ordinance Establishing a Temporary Licensing and Planning <br />Moratorium on Tobacco Products Shops <br /> <br />Introduction: <br /> The City’s regulations pertaining to the licensing of tobacco shops and tobacco sales can <br />be found in Chapter 512 of the City Code. The Chapter was last amended in 2010 to <br />strengthen the language pertaining to license revocations at the request of the Ramsey <br />Tobacco Coalition. (Previously, the entire Chapter was rewritten in 2002.) The Ramsey <br />Tobacco Coalition and the League of MN Cities have prepared a new model tobacco use <br />and licensing ordinance which the City intends to review for potential adoption, either in <br />part or in whole. In addition, the zoning requirements pertaining to Tobacco Products <br />Shops can be found in Title 1100, which will also necessitate review. <br /> <br />Discussion: <br /> <br />In addition to recent changes to state law that may necessitate amending the City Code, as <br />an off-shoot to the provision in Minnesota Statutes that allows for the “sampling” of tobacco <br />products in a tobacco shop, there has been a proliferation of businesses called “Hookah <br />Lounges” where people go to partake in a communal inhalation of filtered tobacco smoke. <br />Some cities have adopted licensing and zoning ordinances to be more restrictive than the <br />MN Statutes by prohibiting on-site sampling. Because of the health concerns related to <br />this type of smoking, licensing and zoning issues, the City Council believes a moratorium <br />on new tobacco products stores in the City for a 12-month period of time is necessary to <br />allow sufficient opportunity to review the model ordinance and other communities’ <br />ordinances to determine what amendments may be necessary to the City Code. <br /> <br />Recommendation: <br /> <br />Staff is recommending Council approval of the attached Emergency Interim Ordinance 859 <br />establishing a temporary moratorium on new tobacco products licenses and zoning <br />approval for a period not to exceed 12 months to give the City sufficient time to review the <br />current laws, model ordinance language, zoning issues and licensing matters. This <br />ordinance requires one reading by roll call vote and is effective immediately. <br /> <br />Respectfully submitted, <br /> <br /> <br /> <br />________________________ <br />James Ericson <br />City Administrator