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July 18, 2023 <br />Page 4 <br />Additional Comments - General Items for Discussion (repeated from the June 27 Work Session <br />memorandum): <br />1.Restrictions on the Number of Licenses. The City could limit the number of licenses it issues. <br />There are communities that have limited the licenses to a specific number (and created a regime <br />for determining who will get them if they have more applicants); <br />2.Restrictions on the Nature of Licensee. Currently, the City limits the number of tobacco <br />licensees to those “grandfathered” as prior licensees. The current tobacco licensees are just a <br />handful of gas stations (Marathon on 29th and Hwy 88, Speedway on 33rd and Stinson, and <br />Holiday on Silver Lake Road at 38th), Cub Foods, Walgreens, and the City’s two municipal liquor <br />stores. The City could choose to follow the tobacco licensing with its cannabinoid licensing, or it <br />could open up cannabinoids to other retailers in the City’s Commercially zoned areas. <br />3.Restrictions on the Principal or Accessory Sales. All of the current tobacco licensees sell <br />tobacco as an accessory aspect of their primary retailing. There are no tobacco-only licensees. <br />The City could limit cannabinoid sales to accessory-only retailing, prohibiting a cannabinoid-only <br />storefront. <br />4.Restrictions on Sampling. The draft regulations prohibit the sampling of products on site at the <br />retail facility. This is unlikely to be an issue for most accessory-only retailers, and would most <br />likely be an aspect of a retailer that specializes in the sale of cannabinoid products. <br />5.Decide not to Regulate. The legislation creates a presumption that edible cannabinoids are <br />allowed, and the City would have to adopt regulations if it wishes to restrict, or even prohibit, <br />the sale. If the City decides not to regulate, the products would be treated as any other edible <br />product, and be eligible for retail sales at any properly zoned site. <br />6.Manufacturing. The attached ordinance does not regulate manufacturing of cannabinoid <br />products. If the City is interested in regulating this aspect, there would need to be an additional <br />section stating that, and probably, an exclusion in the zoning regulations to avoid overlooking <br />that limitation. <br />The League of Cities maintains a webpage that discusses various aspects of the hemp-cannabinoid topic <br />at https://www.lmc.org/resources/cities-and-regulation-of-edible-cannabinoid-products/#Q8. It is laid <br />out in the form of an FAQ, and provides a comprehensive background on the issue that is worth <br />reviewing for any other issues the City may wish to address.