Council introduces adult-use marijuana ordinance, amends hours and conversion language after public comment

The Eastpointe City Council on Feb. 18 introduced a new ordinance to authorize adult-use (recreational) marijuana establishments and simultaneously introduced an ordinance to repeal the city’s prior prohibition on recreational marijuana.

The council introduced Ordinance 25-1247 (first reading) and scheduled a second reading and adoption vote for March 4, 2025. Council members adopted two substantive amendments before introduction: an edit to correct a wording error in a conversion clause and an added requirement that converted provisioning-center permits be associated with facilities that are open and operating by Dec. 31, 2025. The ordinance as amended also grants converted retailers expanded operating hours compared to the current medical-only limits; council approved language allowing adult-use retailers to remain open until 10 p.m. Sunday–Wednesday and 11 p.m. Thursday–Saturday.

Applicants and permit-holders addressed the council during the public hearing. David Roodoy, a representative of Holistic Health Way and a medical provisioning permit-holder, asked the council to correct a likely typographical error and to clarify that conversion language should read “when properly renewed.” He asked that Eastpointe adopt operating hours comparable with nearby municipalities: "Detroit allows them to be open until 10 p.m. ... We would humbly request ... allowance to stay open till 10PM, Sunday through Wednesday, and 11PM, Thursday through Saturday to allow a competitive advantage." Attorney Aaron Geyer, speaking for Shark Tale Inc., echoed the request: “We have licenses available to our south in Detroit... We have licenses available to our north in Roseville. Both of them allow later hours. That is going to divert traffic away from this municipality.”

Residents who opposed broader hours also spoke. Jennifer Nicholas cautioned council to limit the total number of licenses and suggested retaining flexibility to reduce licenses if market conditions warrant. Another resident, Larry Edwards, urged the council to reject expanded recreational availability.

Council members debated zoning buffer distances and raised legal concerns about changing separation requirements that currently govern provisioning-center siting. City staff and the city attorney advised that buffer distances and separation requirements are in the zoning ordinance; changing those distances would require a separate process through the Planning Commission and could expose the city to legal challenges by applicants expecting the original criteria.

Separately, the council introduced Ordinance 25-1248 to repeal the prior prohibition on recreational marijuana and held a first reading. That measure also advanced to the March 4 meeting for a final vote.

On procedure, the council instructed the city attorney to add lapse language to the conversion clause so that conversion from a medical provisioning permit to an adult-use retailer under the conversion process requires the facility to be operational by Dec. 31, 2025; otherwise the conversion would not be available to the permit-holder. Council members also discussed retaining the city’s prior special-land-use conditions for properties that had made community-benefit commitments during the medical licensing process; staff said enforcing those past promises could be legally and administratively complicated and would likely require separate review.

Both ordinance introductions passed on first reading. A second reading and adoption of the adult-use ordinance (and the repeal ordinance) are scheduled for the council’s March 4 meeting.