Ann Arbor Times

The City of Ann Arbor has signed off on new rules that pave the way for the creation of marijuana shops across the area, including so-called “marijuana micro-businesses.”

In addition to the micro-operations, which are defined as businesses that cultivate up to 150 plants, process and package cannabis products and sell them to adults over 21 or to safety-compliance facilities, onsite consumption establishments, processing facilities and retail dispensaries are also part of the grand plan. With the city already being home to a bevy of medical marijuana businesses, city council members voted this month in favor of allowing temporary permits for events with onsite sale and consumption of marijuana by a 4 to 1 margin.

Michigan residents voted to legalize recreational marijuana late last year and Ann Arbor has been among the first communities to embrace the idea.  

Ann Arbor City Council member Jeff Hayner | https://www.a2gov.org/

“Ann Arbor is going to be marijuana central if we pass all this stuff,” council member Jeff Hayner, who voted against the proposal on the strength of his concerns about there being no limits on the number of permits that could be issued for various types of marijuana businesses, told mlive.com.

A final vote on approval is scheduled for Oct. 7. Back in 2018, 78 percent of Ann Arbor voters voiced their support for marijuana legalization, including Hayner.

But in light of all that’s happened since then, Hayner seems to have had a change of heart.  

“I have had people come up to me and say they have legitimate concerns about the placement of these, and legitimate concerns about large money flowing to the cities that do allow this use and it driving out other businesses that serve a broader portion of the community,” he said.