LINDEN GROVE TWP- A proposal to grow cannabis on a 17-acre parcel on Carpenter Road drew strong opposition here last Thursday, as township property owners voted 26-6 against having the township seek the rezoning needed for the operation.
More than three dozen people packed the Linden Grove town hall for the Aug. 20 meeting. Following more than an hour of public discussion and the advisory vote, the three-member town board voted unanimously not to apply to St. Louis County to rezone the property from agricultural to light industrial.
John and Heather Chaulklin, owners of the Weed Wishes dispensary in Cook, can still apply for the rezoning themselves. Having the township apply would have saved the couple approximately $700, but the county would make the final decision regardless of who applied.
Heather Chaulklin said the couple plans to begin with a half-acre seasonal outdoor grow on their property at 1381 Carpenter Rd., approximately eight miles from their dispensary. Their state microbusiness license would allow them to seek approval for an eventual expansion to one acre.
The operation would use hoop houses and natural sunlight, with cannabis grown for approximately four months of the year. No retail sales would take place at the property.
Heather said the project could create six to ten jobs through its construction and ongoing operation. Plans call for a fence at least six feet high, controlled entry points, surveillance cameras, motion sensors, fire and smoke detectors, stored video, and backup power.
John said the cultivated area would be approximately 800 feet from the road and generally not visible to passing motorists.
He said growing their own cannabis would reduce Weed Wishes’ dependence on higher-priced wholesalers. Minnesota dispensaries must obtain their cannabis from producers within the state.
“Right now I am paying an astronomical amount of money at the wholesale level,” he said. “If I can grow it and bring it to market at a way lesser cost, I don’t have to charge my customers what I think is a really premium price right now.”
Several residents predicted the facility could attract trespassers or thieves. Some said their primary concern was not whether the Chaulklins could protect the grow site, but whether unwanted visitors might enter neighboring properties.
“I’m not worried about your security, I’m worried about my security,” one resident said. “What’s going to stop people from coming and breaking into our places? Because we don’t have security cameras, we don’t have fences.”
Kelly Dahl pointed to the limited number of St. Louis County sheriff’s deputies available to respond across the large rural area.
“We live in a rural area where the sheriff is taxed and doesn’t have very many resources to deal with things that we need, car accidents, fires, health emergencies, and break-ins,” he said.
John disputed suggestions that a cannabis business would necessarily bring criminal activity, saying Weed Wishes has experienced no break-ins or other significant law-enforcement problems.
Cook Mayor Dan Manick, who lives approximately one block from the dispensary, supported Chaulklin’s account.
“I have grandkids running around my yard all the time,” Manick said. “I’ve had zero concerns about a dispensary being a block from my house.”
Manick said the abandoned former Cook school has generated more law-enforcement concerns than the dispensary. One property owner near the proposed grow site responded that a rural cultivation operation was not directly comparable to a storefront in Cook.
“This isn’t Cook,” the property owner said. “This isn’t downtown Cook. This is rural.”
Residents also questioned the operation’s water use, its possible effect on nearby wells, and how runoff would be controlled.
John said the operation would use drip irrigation to supply water directly to individual plants. He said an existing well produces approximately 15 gallons per minute but acknowledged that he did not yet know the operation’s expected total water use. He plans to hire experienced cultivation professionals.
Other concerns included traffic, cannabis odor, and nighttime security lighting. The Chaulklins said the facility would generate primarily employee traffic because it would not be open to customers. Several Carpenter Road residents disputed the couple’s description of traffic as minimal.
Beyond the immediate operation, residents questioned the lasting consequences of rezoning agricultural property for light-industrial use.
Kathleen McQuillan, who has lived near the proposed site for nearly 45 years, said her opposition was not based on marijuana or resistance to economic development.
“I’m not against change. I’m not against marijuana,” she said. “I don’t have any issue with that part of this business.”
McQuillan said she was concerned about changes to the area’s rural character and her sense of security, as well as uses that could follow if the Chaulklins sold the property or the cultivation venture failed.
“This is a change in zoning on a piece of property that could change hands many times,” she said. “And we don’t know what that will be.”
Kelly Dahl raised a similar concern, saying the light-industrial designation could remain even if the cannabis operation did not.
“It flips the tables on the neighboring property owners to try to stop the next use, as opposed to somebody trying to change the current use,” he said.
Any future development would remain limited to uses allowed under the county’s light-industrial zoning rules and other applicable requirements.
Other attendees defended the Chaulklins’ property rights and cited the potential for jobs, additional tax revenue, and support for a locally owned business.
Town Clerk Rick Deatherage said Linden Grove does not administer its own zoning and could not approve or reject the rezoning. He said he consulted an attorney with the Minnesota Association of Townships and a county zoning official about the township’s role.
Deatherage said townships generally do not apply for rezoning on behalf of an individual landowner or business. They more commonly seek broader zoning changes intended to serve a public purpose. He also cautioned that filing for the Chaulklins could create expectations from other property owners seeking similar assistance.
The Chaulklins can apply directly to the county, which would hold a public hearing and ask Linden Grove officials for their position. The township could support the application, oppose it, or remain neutral.
Before residents voted, John was asked whether he would proceed if most of the community opposed the facility.
“I haven’t made up my mind yet,” he said. “I honestly don’t know what we’re going to do.”