Jenkins City Council enacts policy on public cannabis, waits on ordinance – Pine and Lakes Echo Journal

JENKINS — The Jenkins City Council mulled over options pertaining to cannabis use and sale in the city during their Monday, Aug. 14, regular meeting.

Pequot Lakes Police Chief Mike Davis met with the council to discuss Crow Wing County’s developing ordinances and the Pequot Lakes City Council’s take on them. Jenkins contracts with Pequot Lakes for police services.

Davis said many details are still developing on both the state and county levels, though the county is likely to make specific decisions much sooner. The city has an option of adopting its own ordinances; however, there may be benefits to simply agreeing to the county ordinance.

Davis said with the county ordinance, prosecution for violations may be left to the county, saving money for the cities that have chosen to allow the ordinance inside city limits.

In addition, county law enforcement will not enforce city ordinances, so if the city enacts its own ordinances and no officers from the Pequot Lakes Police Department are available to respond to an issue, the rules may not be enforceable.

The first decision needed from the council was whether to regulate use in public spaces, particularly city parks. The current statute does not limit smoking in public places, and as a result only public places regulated under the Clean Indoor Air Act (which forbids smoking indoors) are regulated unless the city chooses to enact its own ordinances.

Mayor Andrew Rudlang said he is worried that if the council makes any decisions now, they may muddy the waters later. He was in favor of waiting to see what develops on the county level.

In the meantime, he said he would like the city to adopt a policy, not an ordinance, banning the use of cannabis in the city’s public parks. The rest of the council agreed.

Davis also mentioned the possibility of a moratorium on cannabis sales until 2025, when the state Office of Cannabis Management is expected to begin issuing licenses to sellers.

Many area cities have opted to adopt a moratorium to guarantee the city has time to develop its own processes and policies in relation to issuing city licenses, much like they do liquor licenses.

The fear is that the OCM could possibly form and begin issuing licenses sooner than anticipated, leaving some cities with no choice but to basically accept any and all applications.

“Government interfering with business isn’t generally what I am in favor of,” Rudlang said, though he acknowledged the city does have common sense rules restricting liquor licenses.

City Clerk Krista Okerman said it may be good to hold a public hearing to get feedback. Davis suggested distributing a list he has provided to the council with questions and answers.

The council agreed to hold a public hearing Monday, Sept. 11, to gather input. The council otherwise tabled the discussion for more information.

In other business Monday, the council:

• Approved a developer agreement for the Whitetail Hollows property development.
• Agreed to remove a section from the city’s mutual aid agreement on road maintenance with Jenkins Township pertaining to materials cost sharing.
• Scheduled a budget workshop Aug. 28.

Travis Grimler is a staff writer for the Pineandlakes Echo Journal weekly newspaper in Pequot Lakes/Pine River. He may be reached at 218-855-5853 or travis.grimler@pineandlakes.com.

Travis Grimler began work at the Echo Journal Jan. 2 of 2013 while the publication was still split in two as the Pine River Journal and Lake Country Echo. He is a full time reporter/photographer/videographer for the paper and operates primarily out of the northern stretch of the coverage area (Hackensack to Jenkins).

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