Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Zoning Cannabis topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Planning commission adopts zoning changes adding medical cannabis facility definitions and where they may locate
Summary
The commission approved text amendments adding definitions and zoning categories for medical cannabis uses (dispensary, cultivator, processor, producer, safety testing facility), directing most cultivation/processing to I‑1 and allowing dispensaries/testing in specified commercial/permitted zones.
The Planning Commission voted Aug. 26 to adopt proposed amendments to the zoning ordinance that add definitions and specify where medical cannabis‑related uses may be located in the city.
Planning staff explained the state’s medical cannabis rollout and noted the local code previously allowed municipalities to opt out. The proposed changes add KRS‑derived definitions for cannabis cultivator, cannabis dispensary, cannabis processor, cannabis producer and cannabis safety testing facility and identify appropriate zoning districts for each use. Staff recommended allowing cannabis safety testing and dispensary uses in P‑1 and B‑1/B‑2 with downtown business districts restricted; indoor cultivation, processing and related uses were proposed for I‑1 (light industrial) to keep production out of sensitive downtown areas.
Planning staff noted state licensing caps (one dispensary per county except Louisville) and said the city intentionally did not mirror every state buffer provision in the local code to avoid duplication; the staff presentation encouraged commissioners to adjust local restrictions if they preferred more stringent limits. Commissioners moved to accept the text amendments as presented; the motion passed by voice vote.
The ordinance amendments update zoning definitions and permitted‑use tables; they do not change licensing authority or state rules. The changes will be codified in the city’s zoning ordinance as directed by the commission.
