The City of Delaware has instituted a moratorium on adult-use cannabis operators, cultivators, and retail dispensaries in the community while it decides on how those businesses fit into its zoning code.
On Monday, the Delaware City Council passed an ordinance sending a six-month moratorium into effect immediately. The ordinance was previously amended to shorten the timeframe of the moratorium from the original proposal of two years at the council’s request following its discussion during the Aug. 28 meeting.
A 5-2 vote in favor of passage was cast, with Councilwoman Linsey Griffith and Councilman Kevin Rider representing the two votes against the ordinance.
The moratorium affects only adult-use business operators and will not in any way impact the rights of private consumers in their place of residence as now protected under the Ohio Revised Code. Should the council wish to remove the moratorium prior to the expiration of the moratorium, it can be repealed at any time.
During the discussion, Councilman Cory Hoffman stated he doesn’t believe any moratorium is necessary and is comfortable adhering to what the state has already put in place.
“The State of Ohio is granting licenses so ok, come do business in Delaware. That’s the way I feel,” Hoffman said.
Responding to Hoffman’s comments, Vice Mayor Kent Shafer said he respectively disagreed, noting, “There are some community standards at stake that we need to consider. And certainly, we’re not talking about prohibiting these, but to decide if we want to have additional limits. I at least think that’s a discussion worth having.”
Griffith said she was under the understanding that a public hearing would be scheduled as part of the second reading after she previously stated she would not support any moratorium that wasn’t first presented to the public for feedback.
However, no other council members backed Griffith’s notion, expressing general comfort with moving forward with a moratorium.
Rider said, “In case there is any misunderstanding from the public, we’re not prohibiting it. We’re not trying to stop this. We understand the vote by the people, so that’s not being discussed at all. It’s only about, in my clearest understanding, how the Planning Department would affect zoning and the idea of where they go, with ‘not in my backyard’ being a concern for a lot of people. So the idea of having conditional uses and public comments and hearings as that would be relevant. We’re not trying to go against state law in any regard. We’re trying to apply it with the best consideration for our residents.”
“We also don’t want them on every corner and every gas station,” Mayor Carolyn Riggle added. “Just drive up to Michigan and that’s what you see. No thanks. I go there a lot. But we want to do it right.”
On Sept. 4, the Delaware Planning Commission approved a request for a new addition to the city’s code pertaining to age-restricted retail sales. Included in the new chapter would be a provision limiting the proximity of such establishments to at least 500 feet away from “a parcel of real estate having situated on it a school, church, public library, public playground, or public park as defined by the Ohio Revised Code.”
Also included is a one-mile restriction in which no certificate of building and zoning compliance would be issued for any age-restricted retail sales establishment of the same use. The restriction was originally written to encompass two miles but was reduced after members of the commission expressed concerns that a two-mile radius would severely reduce opportunities for new businesses when considering the locations of businesses already in operation in Delaware.
The ordinance received a first reading by the council during Monday’s meeting and will receive a public hearing at the next meeting, which is scheduled for Monday, Sept. 23.
Reach Dillon Davis at 740-413-0904. Follow him on X @DillonDavis56.
