FAIRMONT– The Fairmont City Council on Monday approved its first cannabis retail application. The council had previously tabled the decision during its June 9 meeting in order to have the city attorney review any changes in the state law that could have affected the registration and licensing process.

Interim City Administrator, Jeff O’Neill, said, “the conclusion was that the application was submitted properly and consistently with our codes. The application that came in was complete and full at the time of delivery… and had been approved as required by our ordinance. It was first in line,” O’Neill said.

He was referring to an application from Purple Life Tots, LLC, for a micro business retail license. The business intends to operate out of the former STEP Inc. building at 411 S. State Street in Fairmont.

The council at its June 9 meeting expressed concerns with the location, especially considering its proximity to Friendship Village, a rental housing development, but was assured by staff that the site met all of the conditions that the council had previously set.

At that meeting City Clerk Betsy Steuber said they were notified on Friday, June 6 about the application through the Accela software and that the applicant had received pre-approval back in April.

However, on Monday, during the public comment portion of the meeting, another interested party, John Siggerud of Emerald Fire Farms, spoke to the council. In 2023 Siggerud purchased the former Casey’s at 2237 N. State Street in Fairmont with the intention of operating a cannabis retail facility there whenever it would be allowable by the state.

He voiced frustration with both the city and the state with how the licensing process had been rolled out.

Minnesota Statute Section 342.22 was amended during the 2025 Legislative Session to now say that a city “shall issue a retail registration” to a cannabis retail business that “has a valid license or preliminary license approval issued by the Office of Cannabis Management.”

Previously, the law was written that cities had a 30 day window to respond to applicants and ensure their desired location was zoned properly. The recent law change now requires a city to proceed with registration if an applicant has received valid preliminary license approval issued by the Office of Cannabis Management. This change went into effect on May 24, 2025.

Steuber had previously said at the June 9 meeting that the change was intended to reduce the risk for the applicants and ensure that local governments with license caps are not delaying decisions

That method may work well for government units that don’t have a limit on its licenses. Per state statute, every city over a population of 10,000 has to allow at least one private cannabis retail business. However, the Fairmont City Council had adopted a policy on April 14, 2025 that allows just one private cannabis retail facility in the city, along with one municipal retail facility, if it chooses to have one.

The private business, therefore, would be accepted on a first come, first serve basis.

During Monday’s meeting, some council members still expressed some hesitancy before approving the application from Purple Life Tots, LLC, either because of the nature of the business or because of how the state process was done.

“I don’t personally agree with the state legislators that cannabis is a good thing to bring into the community, but according to state law and the ordinance that we’ve put into place, we do have to allow one retailer within city limits and I guess the citizens of Fairmont and the surrounding communities will decide how the supply and demand is for that retailer,” said Council Member Randy Lubenow.

Council Member Britney Kawecki agreed and said, “I know not everyone agrees with it. The state of Minnesota changed things regularly and often and last minute, but we did the best we could and I think staff tried to do the best they could as well.”

Similarly, Council Member James Kotewa said, “As of right now it is currently legal in the state of Minnesota. We have ordinances in place to be able to choose and pick and we have a procedure to follow. According to everything we have here, it’s been followed.”

He said it’s disappointing that the state rolled out this process with so many changes taking place.

“It’s frustrating for the people that run the businesses as well as for the council and the city,” Kotewa said.

The council approved the registration application 4-0.