Duluth city leaders propose to limit access to marijuana smoking

DULUTH, MN. (Northern News Now) - Recreational marijuana becomes legal August 1 in Minnesota, and cities across the state are having conversations about regulation and possible restrictions.

Cities, such as Duluth, are scrambling to regulate the drug.

“We’re like oh my gosh, we’d better take a look at some of our city code to know where people will be able to do this and how it aligns to tobacco,” Roz Randorf, Vice President of Duluth City Council, said.

Duluth City Councilors are looking to restrict marijuana smoking in public places, like parks and sidewalks.

“Go ahead and enjoy marijuana, go ahead and smoke it, but just make sure you’re aware of smoking in the appropriate places,” Randorf said.

Randorf worked with City Councilor Arik Forsman to craft the ordinance.

“Nobody expects to go to a park with their kids and have to deal with secondhand smoke, whether that be tobacco or marijuana,” Forsman said.

The Duluth City Council is reading the ordinance Monday night, but conversations about limiting marijuana have been happening across the Northland. Hibbing Mayor Peter Hyduke says they’ve tabled their proposed moratorium to see what other leaders are doing.

“We kind of want to see the direction what comes with the state, we want to see what other cities are going to do because we want to try to be consistent with what our area is doing,” Hyduke said.

Many surrounding cities are looking to Duluth to get guidance about how they are restricting marijuana.

“Lakeville and other cities are reaching out to us and saying, hey Duluth, How are you doing it? What’s working? What’s the language and all of that?” Randorf said.

The City Council hopes to protect all Duluthians when it comes to smoking marijuana.

“Everyone’s right to smoke ends with where we want our lungs to begin,” Randorf said.

The city council will vote on the ordinance August 14.

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