TRAVERSE CITY — As a lawsuit over Traverse City’s proposed regulations of nonmedical marijuana businesses makes its way through an appeal, the city could ask for help.
City commissioners on Monday could ask Michigan Municipal League to file an amicus brief in support of Traverse City for a lawsuit Green Peak Industries and several other would-be nonmedical marijuana retailers filed. The companies objected to rules setting a different, lower limit for nonmedical marijuana retailers than for medical cannabis shops, but 13th Circuit Court Judge Thomas Power agreed the two different limits are legal.
He did, however, strike down the city’s proposed scoring rubric for competitively awarding nonmedical cannabis retail licenses, noting many of the criteria seemed to have nothing to do with selecting the applicant best suited to follow the law, as previously reported.
Cannabis shop owners vowed to appeal, and state Court of Appeals judges declined a motion to expedite that process in December, as previously reported.
Meanwhile, city planning commissioners are reviewing a new set of zoning rules aimed at replacing those the city previously adopted. It would create nine overlay districts throughout the city, each of which would allow two to four retailers within them — a tenth would allow none at all. Some of those districts would have their own special rules, like no retailers in the first floors of the 100 and 200 blocks of East Front Street.
‘Tall buildings’ vote
Commissioners could decide on another sticky subject: whether to place a proposed building up for citywide vote on the November ballot — they were set to do as much on Feb. 21 but bad weather canceled the meeting.
Innovo TC Hall, the developer behind a proposed apartments-and-commercial space building on Hall Street, would ask voters to approve construction of a structure taller than 60 feet, as previously reported.
Save Our Downtown, a nonprofit that supported a voter-adopted city charter amendment requiring a vote for any new construction taller than 60 feet, sued over the project.
Power agreed the building, with elevator shafts, an atrium and other structures that reach beyond 60 feet, should go to a vote.
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