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227147v2 <br /> <br />ORDINANCE NO. 285 <br />CITY OF ORONO <br />COUNTY OF HENNEPIN <br />STATE OF MINNESOTA <br /> <br /> <br />AN INTERIM ORDINANCE PROHIBITING THE OPERATION <br />OF CANNABIS BUSINESSES <br /> <br />The City Council of the City of Orono does ordain: <br /> <br />SECTION 1. BACKGROUND. <br /> <br />1. By enacting 2023 Session Laws Chapter 63, the Minnesota Legislature enacted Minn. <br />Stat. Chapter 342, legalizing adult-use cannabis and permitting the operation of cannabis <br />businesses and the sale of cannabis flower and cannabis products for human consumption. <br />This law creates a new agency, the Office of Cannabis Management, to regulate the <br />sales of cannabis products. <br /> <br />2. Chapter 342 also establishes new regulations for the sale of lower-potency hemp products <br />containing THC. <br /> <br />3. The new law does enact some requirements for production, labeling and testing, and sale <br />of cannabis and hemp products at the state government level. However, the new law <br />creates uncertainty that will need to be resolved by the passage of further regulations by <br />the Office. <br /> <br />4. The new law establishes that the sale of cannabis- and THC-containing products are still <br />subject to local planning and zoning restrictions, and must comply with local zoning code. <br />The new law provides no guidance on how cities are to zone the new businesses, leaving <br />it to local control. <br /> <br />5. Pursuant to Minn. Stat. § 342.13(e), a unit of local government may adopt an interim <br />ordinance to protect the planning process and the health, safety, and welfare of its <br />citizens. Prior to adopting the interim ordinance, the governing body must hold a public <br />hearing on the topic. The interim ordinance may regulate, restrict, or prohibit the <br />operation of any cannabis business within the local government’s jurisdiction until <br />January 1, 2025. <br /> <br />SECTION 2. FINDINGS. <br /> <br />1. The City Council finds there is a need to study Cannabis Products and the uses and <br />businesses related thereto, in order to assess the necessity for and efficacy of regulation <br />and restrictions relating to the sales, testing, manufacturing, and distribution of <br />Cannabis Products, including through zoning ordinances, in order to protect the public <br />health, safety, and welfares of its residents. <br />Orono City Council | Monday, November 27, 2023 | Page 74 of 79