The Village of Northport will receive approximately $58,228 from 2024 recreational marijuana tax revenue thanks to its one cannabis dispensary in Leelanau County, Olean’s.
The Michigan Department of Treasury announced Friday that nearly $100 million is being distributed among 302 local entities and tribes as part of the Michigan Regulation and Taxation of Marijuana Act. There will be 108 cities, 36 villages, 80 townships, 74 counties, and four tribes that will receive payments from the Marijuana Regulation Fund, with each eligible municipality, county, and tribe collecting more than $58,200 for every licensed retail store and microbusiness located within its jurisdiction.
Neighboring Grand Traverse County will collect $756,972.58 for its 13 licensed marijuana dispensaries, and Benzie County will collect $174,685.98 for its three.
Northport Village Manager Jim Dyer said the incoming revenue are funds they would not otherwise receive if Northport had not allowed the creation of a marijuana dispensary business in the village. This is the third consecutive year the village will receive a boost from payments from the state’s Marijuana Regulation Fund. In the first year, the village received $51,800, which was added to the general fund to help offset expenditures.
Dyer said that while they have not specifically figured out what the funds will go towards this year, they will likely add it again to their general fund budget to support general village operations.
“There were people in the community that opposed the decision for sure and I think this kind of indicates that Olean’s has been a good citizen of Northport and as a result, we get a substantial amount of money that we would not otherwise receive because of the decision to allow with its own search process for a new manager.
In January, the village approved a proposed interview schedule that will allow for a new manager to be in place by mid-March, giving the person selected at least a two week transition period before Dyer’s last day set for March 28.
The village operates a $2.2 million budget and has nine employees. The village manager salary range, which includes zoning administrator duties, is listed as $80,000 to $95,000 with a comprehensive benefits package for a multi-year contract.
According to the interview schedule approved, the final round of in-person interviews was anticipated to start the week of March 10, and the decision on the preferred candidate will be made shortly after that.
To watch the candidate interviews online by going to https:// villageofnorthport.net/villagecouncil.
