Bowling Green planners weigh ordinance to limit tobacco and vape shops

The Bowling Green City Planning Commission on Tuesday reviewed a staff-drafted zoning amendment that would create a new land‑use category called “tobacco or vape store” and impose spacing, buffer, hours and window‑signage limits on those businesses.

Heather, a city planning staff member, presented the draft and said it would add “tobacco or vape store” to the city’s comprehensive use table (section 150.42) and create specific use regulations in a new Section 150.69. Heather said the draft would: require 1 mile of separation between tobacco or vape stores; prohibit such stores within 1,000 feet of schools, universities, public parks, public libraries, places of religious assembly and child day‑care centers (measured from property lines); ban on‑site smoking or lounges; prohibit outdoor display of merchandise; limit in‑window LED/neon/fiber‑optic signage to 25% of window surface and bar animated or flashing signs; and limit…