Residents urge council to reconsider ban on licensed marijuana dispensaries

Two residents urged Mayfield Heights City Council to reconsider the city’s local prohibition on state-licensed marijuana dispensaries during public comment on March 24.

Scott Halloran, who identified his address and said he previously appeared before council, said he had secured a location that meets state spacing requirements and argued that a locally regulated, state-licensed dispensary would provide tested products and generate meaningful tax revenue. “The industry is here to stay in Ohio, and we are here to give the citizens clean, tested, regulated product that they want and that they're going to get somewhere,” Halloran said.

Halloran told council he believes the state-level regulatory framework and anticipated changes in Columbus could produce “hundreds of thousands of dollars” in tax revenue for the host city; he also said many local illegal sellers currently market untested products as “hemp” and that the city’s voters approved Issue 2 by a large margin, which he cited as local support for legalization.

Caitlin Frederick, who said she lives on Gaslight Lane and is a laboratory manager working in Ohio’s marijuana industry, described testing requirements for products sold through licensed dispensaries. “Every single product sold through a licensed dispensary is tested for potency, as well as safety assays like pesticides, heavy metals, virtual solvents, mycotoxins, yeast, mold, etcetera,” Frederick said, and urged council to allow a responsible, state-licensed operator to locate in Mayfield Heights.

Council did not take action on the requests during the meeting. Council previously passed a local prohibition on licensed dispensaries in April 2024, referenced by a speaker; speakers asked council to revisit that local decision in light of evolving state law and enforcement issues. No council motion or staff report to rescind or amend the local prohibition was placed on the meeting agenda.