Mason council amends zoning and adopts ordinance to prohibit marijuana dispensaries after hourlong public hearing

Mason City Council on March 10 adopted Ordinance 2025-11 as amended, prohibiting both adult-use and medical marijuana businesses within city limits after a public hearing that drew dozens of speakers and sustained council debate.

The amendment — adopted before the public hearing — changed Exhibit A of the zoning update so that adult-use cannabis operations would be treated in the same way the city currently treats medical marijuana: prohibited in all zoning districts. City staff told the council the ordinance, as amended, would “completely prohibit adult use cannabis and it will leave medical marijuana also prohibited.”

The ordinance arrived as part of a broader zoning code update that also addressed floodplain standards required by FEMA, administrative clarifications, parking and lighting rules, flag-lot restrictions in commercial districts, and new standards for drive-through menu signs. Council members and staff emphasized the marijuana language as the most contested change and the reason the public had turned out in force.

Public comment ran more than an hour. Voices opposing dispensaries urged the council to preserve Mason’s “family-friendly” character and raised health and safety concerns for children. “We do not need the risks, the crime, and the negative impact on our children,” said Cheryl Williams, who identified herself as a Mason resident, during the hearing. Several speakers cited studies or poison-control data they said showed increased pediatric exposures and emergency visits in states after retail legalization.

Other residents urged the council to regulate retail sales rather than ban them. “Rather than helping these illegal businesses by suppressing their competition…we should provide oversight by responsibly zoning safer alternatives,” said Ian Logan, a Mason resident who argued that licensed dispensaries reduce the market for unregulated sellers and provide regulated, tested products.

Greg Maman, an attorney representing a prospective dispensary client, told council members he had evidence of unregulated THC products already being sold inside Mason and asked the council to delay action so the applicant could meet with leadership. “These products…were purchased this afternoon right here in Mason,” Maman said, displaying packaged candy he said was sold locally without child-resistant packaging or labeling.

Several speakers identified organizational positions: Reverend Christian Mays read a resolution from the Warren County Republican Party urging local jurisdictions to ban marijuana businesses; Julie Seitz, president of the Deerfield Township Board of Trustees, said Deerfield supports Mason’s approach; Janice Rotor, a board-certified pediatrician, described increases in pediatric cannabis-related emergency visits and urged a ban to protect children.

Council discussion emphasized local control and property values. Council member Hackie said the council had studied the issue since the state vote and concluded the best course for Mason was to prohibit dispensaries. “Because of that… I will be voting in favor of the ordinance as amended not permitting dispensaries in our city,” Hackie said during deliberations.

After deliberations the council suspended the rules and adopted Ordinance 2025-11 as amended. The roll call was unanimous.

The zoning ordinance contains multiple non-marijuana updates — floodplain rule changes (to conform with FEMA), parking and lighting clarifications, a ban on flag lots in commercial districts, and new rules allowing one drive-through menu sign per permitted drive-through — which staff said were intended to correct inconsistencies between practice and code. Council and staff noted that the FEMA-related language must be updated to meet federal deadlines.

The council set public hearings for other planning items named on the agenda (first readings for conditional-use permits) for April 14. The adopted ordinance does not include an effective date in the ordinance text discussed at the meeting; staff did not state a specific effective date during the hearing.

Votes at a glance: Ordinance 2025-11 (zoning/code update, as amended to prohibit adult-use and medical marijuana businesses) — adopted as amended; unanimous vote.

Context and next steps: With the ordinance adopted, Mason’s zoning code will treat adult-use cannabis the same as medical marijuana — both prohibited — until the council or voters change that position. Staff and planners will finalize the amended code language and incorporate the FEMA-required floodplain updates that were the primary administrative driver of the broader zoning revision.