South Lebanon council holds public hearing on proposed ban of retail cannabis in B1, B2 zones

The South Lebanon City Council opened a public hearing April 24 on a proposed zoning text amendment that would permanently prohibit retail cannabis sales in the city’s B1 and B2 commercial zones, and took no final action after no members of the public spoke.

City staff explained the background of the proposal, saying the council adopted “resolution 20 24 dash 24” on July 2, 2024, which imposed a 365-day moratorium on all cannabis-related activities in the city. “The moratorium is set to expire on 08/02/2025,” the staff member said. The staff member also said a subsequent resolution (identified in the meeting as “resolution 25 20 25 dash tens”) set a public hearing for the proposed amendment and that a notice for the hearing ran in the Journal News on March 24, at least 30 days before the hearing as required by the zoning code.

The proposed text change, as described by staff, would amend Section 15.9 0.9 and Section 15.9 0.10 of the city zoning code to prohibit all cannabis-related retail sales in the B1 and B2 zones. The staff member summarized the amendment by saying it “would prohibit all cannabis related retail sales in the b 1 and b 2 zones in the city.”

The council opened the floor for public comment; no members of the public spoke. The presiding officer closed the public comment period and the council moved on to adjournment. A motion to adjourn was made and seconded and the meeting recessed after a voice vote in which members responded “Aye.” The transcript records no formal vote on the zoning amendment at this meeting.

No future meeting date for final action on the proposed amendment was announced during the session.