Nowthen’s first small cannabis cultivation business is moving forward, but its owner told the City Council the operation will look less like an industrial grow site and more like a “glorified garden.”
The City Council unanimously approved an interim use permit April 14 for Matthew and Rhiannon Paradise to grow cannabis on a 7,000-square-foot portion of their 39.5-acre farm at 19420 Rhinestone St. NW. The cannabis would be grown outdoors and sold to dispensaries, according to the applicants.
“We’re here to start a small business,” Matthew Paradise told the council. “It’s not even a half an acre for the micro license. We’re doing 7,000 square feet.”
City Planner Cindy Nash said the permit is tied to the applicants’ state licensing through the Office of Cannabis Management. A violation of state license conditions would also be considered a violation of the city permit.
The interim use permit does not run with the land and is set to expire April 14, 2031, though the owners could apply for a new permit before then. Nash said the permit would also expire if permit conditions are violated, if the state license is terminated, if the applicant no longer owns the business, or if the owners sell or no longer live on the property.
Paradise said the business is intended to operate under the cannabis regulations approved by the state in 2023. He said he wants to support Minnesota farmers, who he said are part of the required supply chain for cannabis sold under state law.
Paradise said the goal is to build a “grassroots movement” of small Minnesota farmers growing cannabis to supplement their income, especially when other farm products are not doing as well.
“We would love to see even commercial farmers supplement their income with this,” Paradise said.
Paradise said he and his wife have lived in Nowthen since 2021 and love the community, which he described as a mix of city, country and farming residents. He said the business would only cultivate cannabis and distribute it to dispensaries.
“We only cultivate, only farm,” Paradise said. “It’s essentially a glorified garden. We’re not using any machinery. It’s all hand planted.”
Paradise said he had installed 10 cameras in the field to comply with licensing requirements and ensure the plants are not visible.
He also addressed concerns about odor, saying the cultivation area is roughly 700 yards from his cul-de-sac and separated by a horse pasture, trees and wetlands.
“I had some neighbors that had some concern about the smell,” Paradise said. “From my cul-de-sac, it’s roughly 700 yards away. There’s our horse pasture, a stand of trees, our wetland, another stand of trees and then there’s about 7,000 square feet.”
Mayor Shane Hybben noted that some nearby residents opposed the business. According to the meeting packet, some residents signed a petition asking the council to deny the permit.
Paradise said the growing area meets the city’s setback requirements. Tool storage would be located in a nearby small egg building.
The cannabis would be grown outdoors in soil, without hydroponics, Paradise said. The first finished product is expected in about six weeks, with harvests spread out through the summer and fall.
Council Member Dan Swenson asked how much processing the applicants would do.
Paradise said plants are tracked with state-required identification tags. Once the plants reach a certain height, they must be weighed while wet.
Paradise said the plants then go through a seven- to 10-day drying process before being weighed again and trimmed down to the flower. The flower then spends two to six weeks in cured storage.