03-22-2022 Work Session
CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES
Richfield, Minnesota
City Council Work Session
Virtual via WebEx
March 22, 2022
CALL TO ORDER
The meeting was called to order by Mayor Regan Gonzalez at 5:45 p.m. virtually via WebEx.
Council Members
Present:
Maria Regan Gonzalez, Mayor; Mary Supple; Simon Trautmann; Sean
Hayford Oleary; and Ben Whalen
Council Members
Absent:
None
Advisory Board of
Health Members
Present:
Katrina DeVore and Rebecca Case
Staff Present: Katie Rodriguez, City Manager; Jennifer Anderson, Health Administrator;
Chris Swanson, Management Analyst; Sack Thongvanh, Assistant City
Manager; and Kari Sinning, City Clerk
Others Present: Molly Schmidtke, CHES – Community Outreach Coordinator, Association for
Non-Smokers MN; and Rachel Callanan, Senior Staff Attorney at Public
Health Law Center
ITEM #1
PRESENTATION AND DISCUSSION OF POLICY RECOMMENDATIONS BY THE
ADVISORY BOARD OF HEALTH RELATED TO PROHIBITING FLAVORED
TOBACCO PRODUCTS AND CAPPING THE NUMBER OF TOBACCO LICENSES
ISSUED BY THE CITY OF RICHFIELD
City Manager Rodriguez stated the agenda item and introduced Community Health Services
Administrator Anderson. Community Health Services Administrator Anderson introduced the
Community Outreach Coordinator for the Association for Non-Smokers MN, Molly Schmidtke. Molly
Schmidtke gave a brief presentation that outlined the following:
• Tobacco industry targets – youth, women, African Americans
• Impact of Nicotine on the Brain
• How flavored tobacco drives youth to use
• E-cigarette use in the Independent School District 280
• Menthol and its use in tobacco products
• Federal, State, and Local tobacco prevention policies such as other cities that have
placed caps on the number of licenses and restricted flavors that would be sold within
the City
City Council Work Session Minutes -2- March 22, 2022
Council Member Hayford Oleary asked about the trends within the school district between
conventional cigarettes and e-cigarette use. Molly Schmidtke stated that the specific data that she has
only broke it down by e-cigarettes and would follow up with other data pertaining to conventional
cigarette use.
Council Member Trautmann asked for clarification of the percentage of students that are
showing signs of tobacco addiction. Molly Schmidtke stated that seventy percent of students that
currently use tobacco products are showing signs of addiction.
Council Member Hayford Oleary appreciated the presentation and stated that the municipal
owned liquor stores should stop tobacco sales if we are going to impose restrictions. He shared
concern on how this would affect small businesses. He also stated his support on banning flavored
tobacco including menthol and a limit of the number of licenses issued of which he would like more
data about. Molly Schmidtke stated that she would follow up with research about the number of
licenses.
Council Member Supple supported banning flavored tobacco and asked about the sunset of
the licenses. Molly Schmidtke stated that the licenses would be reduced through attrition or a certain
date. Senior Staff Attorney Rachel Callanan stated that from a public health standpoint that the sooner
the better to end all tobacco sales for the betterment of the community and explained that a set date
of years would allow for businesses to adapt their sales. Community Health Administrator Anderson
stated when the City of Bloomington went through this process that they gave businesses that were
selling flavored tobacco time to get rid of the supply they currently have.
Council Member Trautmann thanked the presenters for their work and supported limiting the
sale of flavored tobacco and ending tobacco sales in general with consideration to gas stations and
small businesses.
Mayor Regan Gonzalez stated that she is in support of this and asked about the City of Edina
passing this ordinance. Molly Schmidtke stated that it was passed about a year before the City of
Bloomington and the City of Edina was sued by the tobacco industry regarding flavored tobacco sales
which is a similar case to the City of Los Angeles that was judged in favor of the City. Mayor Regan
Gonzalez also asked why the cities of Edina, Bloomington, and Richfield all passed this legislation at
different times when the same public health administration services all three. Community Health
Services Administrator Anderson explained that the Advisory Board of Health (ABH) had
conversations about this topic in late 2019 after it had already been passed in Edina and then covid
happened which put this issue on hold. Mayor Regan Gonzalez commented that Richfield is
disproportionately impacted by public health issues and of the three cities that the Public Health
Administration serves, Richfield does not get the attention that it deserves.
Council Member Whalen agreed with the support from other Council Members and shared that
there should be a clearer goal as to when the licenses would cease instead of being perpetually
renewed. He also appreciated the all the work from everyone involved on this public health issue.
Community Health Services Administrator Anderson briefly summarized that Council is all in
support of eliminating flavored tobacco products including at the municipal liquor stores and that the
different options for capping the number of licenses could be returned to Council for further
discussion.
Council Member Whalen stated that he has trust with the ABH guidance as to which option to
cap the number of licenses since this ordinance would also have first and second readings at Council
meetings and agreed with Council Member Hayford Oleary who stated that municipal liquor stores
should stop selling tobacco all together - not just flavored tobacco products.
City Council Work Session Minutes -3-March 22, 2022
Council Member Hayford Oleary thanked Council Member Whalen for mentioning his earlier
comment regarding tobacco sales at the municipal liquor stores and asked the other Council
Members if they are in agreeance of which Council Members Trautmann and Supple agreed that we
should be the leaders in this initiative. City Manager Rodriguez stated that more research would have
to be conducted in order to make that decision of which Council was fine with Staff making that
business decision without Council approval.
Mayor Regan Gonzalez and Council Members Trautmann and Supple agreed with Council
Member Whalen that the ordinance does not need to be brought back to Council for discussion at a
work session.
Council Member Trautmann asked staff to be mindful of the purchasing habits of small
businesses so they are not penalized for purchasing something that was legal.
Rachel Callanan shared that the City Attorney should review the obligations that the municipal
owned liquor stores have in order to stop selling all tobacco products.
City Manager Rodriguez summarized the discussion:
•General agreement of Council to ban flavored tobacco products and to authorize staff to
allow time for businesses to become compliant.
•Also general agreement of Council to cap the number of tobacco licenses in the City and
to authorize staff to review the different options.
•Consider ending all tobacco sales in municipal owned liquor stores of which staff will
research before making a final decision.
Council Member Whalen reiterated his earlier comment that licenses should have a clear end
date regardless of how long that is and that licenses should not be continually renewed.
Mayor Regan Gonzalez thanked everyone for the discussion and the clarifications.
ADJOURNMENT
The work session was adjourned by unanimous consent at 6:41 p.m.
Date Approved: April 12, 2022
Maria Regan Gonzalez
Mayor
Kari Sinning Katie Rodriguez
City Clerk City Manager