Lexington drafts new rules for location of medical marijuana dispensaries

Cities like Lexington don’t want to be taken by surprise when medical marijuana becomes legal in 2025. Instead, government officials are planning now for what the program will look like in their city.

“We feel that we need to go ahead and get our own regulations in place before any licenses are issued by the state for medicinal cannabis. So what we have done, the Planning Commission has initiated an update to the zoning ordinance – a zoning ordinance text amendment – that will address all of the cannabis business types,” states Jim Duncan, the Lexington Director of Planning.

There are many different types of cannabis businesses that will be affected: cultivators, processors and manufacturers, safety compliance facilities, and of course, medical marijuana dispensaries. State law requires some of these businesses, specifically dispensaries, from being within 1,000 feet of schools and childcare centers and requires them to close by 8 p.m.

Hashtag Cannabis Dispensary, located in Everett, Washington, advertises itself as a "friendly, neighborhood pot shop."

But Lexington may implement rules of their own in addition to state regulations.

“The text amendment, as it's written right now would allow [medical marijuana dispensaries] in the neighborhood business zone, the B-1 zone, and in some instances, those are adjacent to neighborhoods. So there could be some concern from neighborhoods about that.”

A public hearing on the proposed text amendment will be held on May 9th, followed by a possible council vote in June.

You can read more information here on WEKU.