Thanks to Dakota County for their support.
The West St. Paul City Council discussed the stipulations for cannabis sales and production within city limits, explored possibilities for moving utilities underground at the Smith and Dodd intersection, and passed plan approvals and alterations for the townhome development on Monday.
Adult Use Cannabis
Discussions around adult use of cannabis took up the majority of the Open Council Work Session (OCWS), pushing out the planned budget workshop until the next session and preventing a decision being made on the Smith/Dodd Project regarding underground utilities.
- Zoning: Council cannot prohibit the founding of businesses in West St. Paul, but they discussed limiting the number of available licenses to one to start out. They must be at least 1,000 feet from schools.
- Registry: Council discussed the pros and cons of requiring a registry that is kept up by the city. The main concerns with this were the workload it would put on staff, as they would need to complete a nine-page compliance checklist for each location selling cannabis products, and that this does not exclude low-potency cannabis products. The potential of outsourcing the labor through a joint powers agreement is being considered.
- Other restrictions: Council agreed that limiting cannabis sales to the same hour limitations as liquor sales seemed appropriate. There was some debate surrounding the enforceability of requiring cameras in cannabis retail stores.
Next: These measures will come forward in future meetings for official approval.
Dodd/Smith Undergrounding Utilities
There was a brief discussion on including a multiphase plan for 2025–2026 for the realignment of the Smith/Dodd intersection, consisting of redirecting current above-head power lines to a more aesthetically appealing underground alternative.
There were mixed opinions on the practicality of this. Council members John Justen and Robyn Gulley both echoed concerns about other properties seeing the renovation and requesting the city provide support elsewhere, which would not be in the budget. Ultimately, no decision toward approval or rejection of the plan was made, with Mayor Dave Napier requesting Council members go to the intersection and observe whether such utility redirection might be beneficial to the area.
Townhomes at Former Church
Discussions around the townhomes at the former Faith United Methodist Church were divided into two separate items, one for a change in the housing density, and the other for rezoning, site plan, and preliminary/final plat approval.
- Traffic: The main concern brought up by residents was the traffic the current layout causes for Schletty Lane. While outlet changes were discussed, the applicant explained the difficulty of diverting traffic to a county road as opposed to a city road.
- Overflow parking: Another concern brought up by Mayor Napier was the overflow parking onto Schletty Lane. Taking this into consideration, the applicant will be considering alternative overflow parking spaces with the design upfront.
- Property taxes: Council member Justen wanted to clarify that this building project does not include tax increment financing (TIF), which will lead to a $120,000 annual increase in taxes to the city as soon as the project is done (previously the property paid $0 in property taxes as a nonprofit).
All items for the townhome expansion passed unanimously after discussion, with the added stipulations taken into consideration.
Other Items on the Agenda
- Harmon bathroom concerns: During community comments, resident Edgar Herrara brought forward concerns surrounding the bathroom doors at Harmon park, when they locked and caused a child to become trapped inside. Mayor Napier said staff was aware of the incident and blamed a technology malfunction. They are working to prevent this incident from ever reoccurring.
- Consent agenda: The consent agenda included a contract approval for a Mud Lake survey and design memo to consider dredging accumulated sediment.
- Budget workshop rescheduled: Council ran out of time to discuss the planned budget workshop during the OCWS, so it was pushed forward to the next meeting.
Engage
- Watch: City Council and OCWS meetings are archived online.
- Learn more: Guide to West St. Paul City Council.
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