NILES ­— When Niles Mayor Nick Shelton broke the tie vote at Monday night’s city council meeting, granting seven provisional licenses to four medical marijuana companies by a vote of 5-4, the more than 50 people in attendance burst into applause.

It was another major step in bringing medical marijuana businesses to the streets of Niles.

The four companies and provisional licenses issued include:

• MJM Holdings, Grow Class C license, processor license and a provisioning license.

• MediCann, Grow Class C license, a processor license.

• MichiCann, Grow Class A license.

• Oasis Wellness 1, a provisioning license.

The first three companies listed here have applied to do business in the industrial park area, while Oasis Wellness 1 has proposed setting up shop along the commercial district. After earning approval from Niles, the businesses are now tasked with getting their application approved by the state.

Some council members who were opposed to the issue Monday night felt the city was moving too fast on their decision though. Councilmembers who voted “no,” included Daniel VandenHeede, Bob Durm, Georgia Boggs and Tim Skalla.

VandenHeede defended his position and said he was not opposed to medical marijuana businesses. He praised all city officials who had played a role in researching in researching and planning the opt-in ordinance. He also cited the roughly 30,000 pages in applications that had been sifted through to make an adequate recommendation from 21 different applications, 13 of which were for provisioning centers, five for grow centers and three for processing facilities.

“We could be Pot City USA, if we really wanted to with those 13 [dispensary] submissions,” VandenHeede said. “But I don’t really want to be that, and I have always advocated for taking it slow on this process. I am not against doing it.”

VandenHeede said he wished to issue just the three licenses to MJM holdings to do business in the Industrial Park, and then re-evaluate other potential applicants in a year.

“Once you let the cat out of the bag, so to speak, you can’t really put it back in,” VandenHeede said.

Councilmember Durm said he agreed with VandenHeede, and said city leaders seemed to be acting in haste and “putting the cart before the horse.”

“It has been my opinion all along that we need to start slowly, so we can see what the impact is going to be on the city,” Durm said.

While Councilmember Boggs agreed with them, she also cited her general opposition to medical marijuana in the first place.

“What kind of signal are we sending our young people,” Boggs asked.

Councilmembers who voted “yes,” on the issue included John DiCostanzo, Gretchen Bertschy, Charlie McAfee, William Weimer and Mayor Shelton.

Councilmember DiCostanzo said he was comfortable with the city’s recommendations and that, by voting “yes,” city leaders were adhering to the needs of their constituents.

“I anticipate the benefits to the city will be locally available, high-quality marijuana at a competitive price, which was something that was of great interest to those who attended the forums,” DiCostanzo said.

He also cited the opportunity for well-paying jobs and new businesses with a vested interest in the city where they operate. Additionally, he said the city would garner tax and utility revenue.

“This is a locomotive running down the tracks, and if we say ‘no’ now, we are going to miss the opportunity for it being in our community,” DiCostanzo said.

In the audience that evening was Tony Grzywana, the owner of MichiCann, who is proposing a 500-plant organic grow operation that could set up shop in the  industrial park. Grzywana, of Benton Harbor, was among the companies who received a provisional license Monday night.

Grzywana said he was interested in Niles because he felt the city was very organized with their opt-in approach.

“We read their ordinance and it fit our description, so we just went straight in,” Grzywana said. “I want to be part of the community, where my business is.”

For the past four years, he has served Michigan residents as a caregiver. Grzywana said he knows there is still a lot of stigma attached to medical marijuana use, which is why he is hoping that the company’s transparency and education will help to overcome this.

He said he plans to sell his house soon and move to Niles.

As to when he hopes to do business in Niles, Grzywana said as soon as he gets all necessary approval.

“We are ready to do business now,” Grzywana said. “We were ready yesterday.”