Most setbacks for facilities like this are 300 feet. But the IM 26 task force is suggesting 1,000 feet from parks, schools, churches AND residential. One cannabis advocate said to me, ‘That means NO dispensaries basically anywhere in Sioux Falls. Not on Minnesota Avenue or 41st street.’ They also pointed out to me that when they looked at a map and did a GIS approach to the setback they could only find a couple of spots in Sioux Falls.
The rumor going around is that Mayor TenHaken is the one who instructed the task force to make the setback so strict. I still don’t understand how we continue to allow Sioux Falls Mayors to stick their noses in policy issues. He is violating city charter.
As I have told the mayor and council publicly, your views on the morality of using legal cannabis is NOT your problem. You must uphold the laws on the books and not make it so difficult to distribute a product that the voters of South Dakota deemed legal.
I expect several lawsuits challenging the setback if passed. I also expect it to be passed, because that is what authoritarians do. I also think there could be a petition drive in Sioux Falls to change the setbacks in city ordinance.
And with the delay in the verdict on Amendment A, I don’t expect the SD Supreme Court ruled in favor of it. I think they will agree with the lower court. You also have to remember that the high court takes the summer off, so don’t expect a verdict until this Fall.
The Mayor is both an active member of the City Council, and he is the head of the city. He does have the ability to recommend, and bring forth ordinances to the City Council as supported by himself.
Section 3.03 – “The mayor shall, at the beginning of each calendar year, and may at other times give the council information as to the affairs of the city and
recommend measures considered necessary and desirable.”
As a “resident’ I can propose a concept, draft an ordinance, and urge the Mayor to present it to the City Council, work thru the Attorney’s Office to get proper style and form, the ordinance then goes to the “Department” of which the proposed ordinance effects, and finally, that “resident” has to get at least 2 council members to sponsor it, or get the Mayor to sponsor it to place it on the agenda.
So yes, the MAYOR does have the power to recommend, promote, and place Ordinances onto the ‘agenda’ for the City Council to adopt, and should his ‘vote’ be needed, he may vote on the agenda to break a tie.
SDCL 34-20G58 does allow for the Local Government to set the Time, Place, and Manner, and it can if it so chooses set the # of establishments to be allowed in the city.
It must allow for at least “1” Dispensary to be in the city, but if they do impose a ‘specific number’ they may upon, the DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH can solicit and consider input and reasoning for the CITY doing such.
The CITY cannot prohibit a “Dispensary” expressively, they can only restrict Time, Place, Manner, and the # of dispensaries.
I do not see the Mayor nor the City Council proposing such restriction on # of Dispensaries, however, they are controlling the “place” of which they can be placed within the city, in order to maintain distance from a School, Church, Public Park, Residential Area.
I interpret this to mean, the City Council, is choosing to place these “Dispensaries” along such roads as 41st Street between Minnesota Ave and Marion Road, the so called business district…
I imagine, you can under these rules, place a dispensary along Cliff Avenue between Rice Street and Monument Hill; and places such as West Avenue between 6th Street and Russell Street; or along Russell Street between Western Avenue and Minnesota Avenue..
I can see a dispensary being allowed along S. Louis Avenue between the I-29 Interchange southbound to 49th Street in fact…(Business District).
I can see Dispensaries being established N. Cliff Avenue north of Benson Road to I-90…
I can see Dispensaries being placed along Russell Street between Kiwanis Avenue and I-29 Interchange, northward up along Westport to Benson Road.
So I can see many places where you can place a DISPENSARY following the 1,000 foot rule.
Correct Me if I am wrong…
Relax, Enjoy Life, Have Fun.
Colorado law states that no dispensary can exist within 1,000 feet of a school (but there are allowances for local governments to shrink that distance or allow exemptions for long-time dispensaries).
Here’s a compilation of state cannabis laws for SD guidance.
https://www.covasoftware.com/us-dispensary-laws/colorado
At least one can buy pot and fireworks at the same location. Why are political types so afraid of passive pot smokers? OK, I’ll do gummy bears but I’d like to buy them at a drug store.
Country Living.