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Outdoor cannabis cultivation proposed for two five-acre fields in Chisago County have complied with a local review as part of a state licensing process.  The county is required to certify zoning and land use regulations are being met for the sites, which Environmental Services Director Kurt Schneider says has been completed.  

A state inspection will be performed and state standards need to be verified before the license is issued.  

These two local cultivation business enterprises are coming in at the forefront of the recreational cannabis industry in Minnesota. The state announced last week the first-ever cultivation/packaging approval for a non Native American applicant,  had been issued to an operation in Brook Park, in Pine County.

Schneider stressed the two Chisago County applicants are outdoor cultivation.   Should there be any grow operations looking to use a greenhouse in rural areas under county jurisdiction, the process is different.  Greenhouse uses are only permitted in Rural Retail & Tourism Centers and not in townships in general. 

And any retail cannabis sales (stores) need a license from the state Office of Cannabis Management and a local government retail registration.  The Office of Cannabis Management holds a lottery July 22 for retail licensees and it is a second chance for the social equity entrepreneurs who were not drawn in the first lottery.

Meanwhile in other matters—Schneider also reports the software interface for the new county remote permit and zoning inspections services is functioning well now.  The reservation system for inspections was encountering a wireless glitch and had been turned off briefly.

Those seeking to do construction in the county should check out the Tyler on-line permit process at the county website.  The system retains data and tracks commercial, residential permit numbers and construction values along with septic, and solar permitting data.  In May alone the zoning department processed 234 permits, (which includes HVAC and other smaller projects that call for a permit.)

Plus: the county planning commission has some public hearings pending for its regular meeting July 3.

 Rush City Sno-Bugs club wishes to use a 23 acre parcel in Nessel Township for a club headquarters and youth snowmobiling training facility. The property is at Rush Pt Drive and Evergreen

Another snowmobile club— SnoBarons— will ask for revisions to the permit authorizing Hay Days, an annual motorsports festival just west of Almelund.  The application is for adding Friday to the now 2-day event every fall.  SnoBarons have added an eight acre adjacent farmstead to the Hay Days property,  and also seek to include the land in the permitted area— along with revised alcohol service/consumption conditions on their Hay Days permit.  

And, a 55 acre site in Sunrise Township at the northwest corner of CSAH9 and Olson Road is also proposed to be subdivided for eight lots with a preliminary plat approved.

The planning commission meets at the Government Center the first Thursdays of the month at 7 p.m.

The County Board last week took action on applications recommended for approval from the planning commission:

The creation of two five-acre lots on Krans Lake in Fish Lake Township were ok’d

Pleasant Valley Hollow, a five acre lot was ok’d

Schneider told the commissioners he is setting up meetings with parties involved in a couple of vacation rental-by-owner situations. He expects discussing potential changes or clarifications to the county short term rentals licensing process.  County Commissioners Rick Greene and Dan Dahlberg are serving as liaisons to the informal group.  Confrontations and complaints have arisen in local neighborhoods from either lack of understanding of, or lack of enforcement of short term rental conditions.

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