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Pastor urges council to block vape shop across from Mount Zion; city says zoning allows the use
Summary
Pastor Nehemiah Smith of Mount Zion First Baptist Church urged the Rocky Mount City Council to prevent a vape shop from opening at 301 West Thomas Street. Interim City Manager Peter F. Varney said the property is in a B-5 commercial services zone and that the tenant has applied for a certificate of occupancy and is finishing interior work.
Pastor Nehemiah Smith, speaking for Mount Zion First Baptist Church, urged the Rocky Mount City Council to prevent a proposed vape shop at 301 West Thomas Street from opening directly across from the church.
"Allowing a vape shop to operate in such close proximity to our church is an affront to our Christian sensibilities and the values that we strive to uphold," Pastor Smith said, noting Mount Zion's 158-year history and the congregation's community programs.
Interim City Manager Peter F. Varney told the council the site is in a B-5 commercial services zoning district and that the city received an application from the tenant for a certificate of occupancy. "The tenant is still doing the work on the inside of the building in order to get to the place where they can obtain the certificate of occupancy," Varney said.
Council members asked whether the property had been rezoned or whether the proposed use required a public hearing. Varney said the 301 West Thomas Street site is zoned B-5 and has been for a long time; the land-development code permits the kinds of commercial services uses that include the applicant's business. "If it's within that permitted use of B-5, then they're in their right to open up any commercial services in their district," one council member observed during the exchange.
Council members and staff clarified that the certificate-of-occupancy process focuses on building-safety and code compliance and does not provide a separate public hearing on permitted uses in an existing zone. Varney said there is no rezoning application in this instance and therefore no formal rezoning process for public comment.
Members of Mount Zion and other residents expressed concern about the concentration of vape shops and the shop's proximity to the church. Pastor Smith described vape shops as contributing to addiction and public-health challenges and urged the council to "take our concerns seriously." Varney and council members responded by explaining the limits of zoning and the city's role in enforcing building and occupancy codes rather than banning a use specifically permitted by the current zoning.
No council vote or ordinance on the specific vape-shop application was recorded at the meeting. The council received the public comment and staff update and did not take further action on the item at that time.
