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Mom’s Kitchen was a longtime landmark in the city of Memphis so many were disappointed to see it close in July 2020.
Soon, a retail marijuana shop will fill the space. The outlet will have both recreational and medicinal marijuana for sale to the public.
Mayor Pro Tem Eric Schneider confirmed that Steve Francis, the owner of Country Smokehouse in Almont, purchased the property along with a partner and the city issued them a license to operate in late December. He said he was told the name for the new shop would be Revive.
The facility was undergoing some renovations but was actually supposed to be open by now. Schneider said a few things came up with inspections that slowed things down. To accommodate the delay, the Memphis City Council recently gave the owners of the store a two-month extension because when the state issues a license the business has to follow guidelines and open within a certain time.
When it does open the retail store will include a lobby, Schneider said, similar to an internet café where patrons can get coffee and snacks. After signing in, customers will be escorted into the shopping area of the store where an employee will answer questions about products and make sales. Customers will then leave the shop through a rear door.
“This is very regulated by the state and there are lots of things they have to do there, like install cameras that are on 24 hours a day, so the state can look in at any time,” Schneider said.
As for the growth operation, currently proposed for an industrial area at the north end of Memphis, Schneider said the matter was before the city’s planning commission once already and a second public hearing is set for July 14.
Any growth operation approved by the city would be limited to harvesting just one crop a year and all licenses for marijuana facilities prohibit ingesting on sites in the city.
Schneider said the outdoor option for growth would likely be best for Memphis.
“No matter what you do there’s going to be a smell but with outdoor the harvest is only August and September so that would be limited,” Schneider said. “The outdoor growth just has less impact overall.”
Background on the ordinance
Members of the city council discussed the possibility of allowing marijuana facilities during several meetings in 2020 before approving the ordinance in October. Voters in Michigan approved proposals to legalize medicinal use of marijuana in 2008 and voted in favor of recreational use in 2018.
When officials in Memphis were considering the ordinance last fall, Schneider said the city has all the power because officials can report anyone not in compliance to the state and also pull the license approved by the city at any time.
The City Council voted to limit the number of businesses allowed to just one license per type of facility including a lab, a retail place, a testing lab, a growth operation or a secure transporter.
The ordinance does not allow micro businesses that would do growth, processing and selling in the same location, Schneider said.
Should Council feel the businesses aren’t operating as planned, Schneider said the city can amend the ordinance or remove it from their books with a majority vote.
The economic impact of the businesses in the city could be plentiful. Schneider said each license will cost the owner of the establishment $5,000 annually and the money coming into the city from state tax revenue could bring another $1,700 a month, if not more.
Councilman opposes pot places
City Councilman Larry Wilson cast the lone no vote on approval for the new ordinance last fall. Today, he says he still opposes both the retail marijuana shop about to open downtown and the plan for a growing operation in the north part of the city.
As to the second planning commission public hearing on the issue set for July 14 Wilson said letters notifying residents near the proposed growing property about the hearing have already been sent out.
“I’m opposed to that one as well, I’ve done research on it and as the plants grow and mature there’s a pungent odor to if and if I lived next to that I’d be quite upset,” Wilson said, adding he also has research documents stating property values near such a facility can be affected in a negative way.
Despite the state regulations and rules the city might impose on the marijuana businesses, Wilson just doesn’t like the idea of those type of establishments in Memphis.
“We’re so small, one square mile with 1,200 people and I know it’s OK economically but I just think we are too small,” Wilson said. “And I might just be an old fogey I don’t know but I don’t think we need it here in Memphis.”
The owner of the new retail shop, Steve Francis, could not be reached for comment.
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