Business license will go to full council

Months after beginning the process of drafting a business license, Havre's Planning and Development Committee will recommend a version that requires city businesses, as well as outlying businesses that do business in the city, to the City Council Monday.

To keep with the intent of the license as a way to know what business is where when revising zoning codes, the committee decided to forgo a fee for at least the first year.

The process was sparked when it was realized that city officials did not know where medical marijuana businesses are located within the city.

Businesses outside the city limits that do business within its boundaries, will also be required to obtain a business license. Owners could choose instead to apply for an itinerant vendor license — a temporary license for a fee.

The license is not meant to deter b u s i n e s s e s , s a i d c ommi t t e e Chairperson Janet Trethewey, adding that she did not realize how many businesses from out of town do work in Havre.

"But we went to make sure they're Legitimate, reputable," she said.

To avoid a fee and to be onfile for a year as a reputable business, it would benefit those businesses to register as such, Trethewey said.

"But it still may be something for someone who comes through town once a year," she added.

The licenses, while they will affect the grain elevators and stock yards, will not affect agricultural producers, she said.

"They're just dealing with the middleman," she said.

Similarly, businesses that have no affect on the area in which they are located will not be affected. Trethewey gave the example of an accountant preparing tax returns out of a home office.

"Anytime it impacts the neighborhood, because we need to make sure we're not violating our own rules," she said about when the license would be required.

The committee next will begin to address any zoning changes that are needed, including integrating annexed properties into the city. Those properties' zoning codes are grandfathered under the annexation that became official the end of last year. If they ever change owners, that status will revert and city zoning will apply.

Knowing where businesses are also will help when looking at rezoning areas where the use may have changed over the years.

"That's the whole point," Trethewey said.

"So that we can match the zoning with the reality," she said.