Montgomery County council hears concerns about 100‑foot buffer for cannabis dispensaries

Montgomery County Council held a public hearing June 26, 2025, on Zoning Text Amendment (ZTA) 25‑07, a proposal that would prohibit licensed cannabis dispensaries within 100 feet of lots improved with residential uses.

The measure matters to local officials and residents because state law currently identifies a 500‑foot buffer from “sensitive locations” such as schools, child care facilities, libraries, parks and places of worship. Testimony at the hearing focused on whether the county’s 100‑foot proposal would conflict with state rules, how it would be applied across mixed‑use areas, and the immediate impact of a proposed dispensary in Kensington.

Tracy Fuhrman, mayor of the Town of Kensington, told the council she believes both the state and the county may have overlooked applications of the state’s 500‑foot rule. “After a conditional state license was granted to the dispensary, we informed the state by a letter dated March 19 that three places of worship were overlooked or missed that are within 500 feet of the dispensary,” Fuhrman said. She said the state referred Kensington to the county, and a March 19 letter to the county’s MCA director Robinson has not received a response.

Benjamin Burberry, representing the Montgomery County Planning Board, recommended simplifying the ZTA by creating a distinct cannabis dispensary use rather than recodifying general retail. He also warned that treating “property improved with a residential use” as subject to a 100‑foot buffer “is almost everywhere in the county,” and could amount to a near‑prohibition in zones where retail and housing colocate. “You might want to consider alternatives,” Burberry said, urging the council to consider different treatments for different zones or housing types.

Reverend Dr. Lehi Westbrook, a Kensington resident, described direct neighborhood impacts from a proposed dispensary site on University Boulevard. Westbrook said the building “would fully abut my backyard and be 30 feet from my bedroom window,” and that the site’s former bank drive‑throughs would come “right up to the fence that borders my house.” Westbrook listed four concerns: noise, crime, children’s exposure and home values. “This dispensary . . . will close maybe at 9 in the evening,” Westbrook said, adding testimony that, because cannabis remains illegal under federal law, the business may be cash‑only and rely on armed guards.

Speakers and the planning board also asked the council to consider parity with alcohol licensing, noting state law limits local cannabis rules from being stricter than local alcohol regulations. Mayor Fuhrman asked how ZTA 25‑07 would affect restaurants seeking on‑ and off‑sale liquor licenses near residences and whether the county would grandfather existing businesses or change the buffer to 50 feet or apply the rule only where a dispensary directly abuts a residential parcel.

The public hearing closed after testimony. Council members said a Planning, Housing and Parks Committee work session on the measure will be scheduled at a later date and that written materials for the council should be submitted by the close of business on June 26, 2025.

The hearing record includes testimony from the Town of Kensington, the Montgomery County Planning Board and multiple residents who said the proposed ZTA could affect both immediate neighborhood outcomes and broader retail siting policy across the county.