Redmond Welcomes Marijuana

The Redmond City Council voted in favor of allowing marijuana dispensaries within city limits on April 10. The vote implemented a 3% tax on the sale of marijuana items, and applied time, place and manner restrictions to how dispensaries can be operated within the City.

The vote comes after a November advisory ballot measure, gauging voters’ interest in allowing dispensaries in the city. The measure, which was a non-binding recommendation to the Council, passed with about 53% of the votes. Following the election, the Redmond City Council decided to pursue an amendment to its code, to follow the desires of the majority of its residents.

The approved time, place and manner regulations will restrict the locations of these dispensaries to be a certain distance from schools, parks, daycares, transit hubs, treatment centers and shelters. These rules will also prohibit the mobile delivery of marijuana, and allow businesses to operate starting at 8am to no later than 8pm.

“We’re not going to have more than three dispensaries, it’ll be two or three, but it will provide appropriate access and generate some revenue to the city,” Redmond Mayor Ed Fitch told the Source Weekly. “The revenue will certainly be welcome.”

The 3% tax on marijuana items will go toward the City General Fund and could be used for police and other services. According to a staff report, revenues will likely exceed $100,000 annually.

“It’s a question of trying to achieve the appropriate balance between the people who want dispensaries, which is the majority, and the people who don’t want dispensaries, which was a fair amount, 46%,” Fitch said. “So, I think we’ve done a good job of establishing a balance.”

After years of state-implemented pauses on new marijuana licenses, due to claims that the industry is oversaturated, a law passed in April 2024 essentially placed an indefinite pause on new marijuana licenses, tying future licenses to the number of residents.

With this law, however, a business already holding a license is able to sell the license or relocate its business.

While Fitch acknowledged the moratorium, he anticipates that people will be interested in transferring a license from their location, in order to open a dispensary in Redmond. According to Fitch, the City has already seen quite a bit of interest from retailers.

City staff members in Redmond are currently working on the application process, which they anticipate having ready in about a month. At that time, the city can begin taking applications for dispensaries.

According to Fitch, the City’s preference on selecting applicants will be those already in Central Oregon.

This article appears in Source Weekly April 17, 2025.