Wellington trustees approve amended marijuana ordinance, retain 2,000‑foot school setback

Wellington trustees voted on June 13 to approve an amended marijuana ordinance that retains a 2,000‑foot setback from schools while adopting broader setback and licensing changes the board had sought since a May work session.

The board approved Ordinance O-06-2023 (version B as amended) after public comment and a successful amendment to restore the 2,000‑foot school buffer. Trustee Daley motioned to adopt version B and Trustee McDonald seconded; Trustee Gater moved to amend the school setback back to 2,000 feet and the amendment passed on a 5‑2 roll call. The final roll call on the amended motion was 5‑2 in favor; the board recorded the motion as passed and adopted the ordinance as amended.

Why it mattered: The ordinance package in the board packet included three alternatives. Option A would have left the town’s current standards largely unchanged (2,000‑foot school setback and explicit inclusion of licensed home daycares in the ‘school’ definition). Option B proposed multiple adjustments to setbacks and excluded home daycares from the school definition while reducing the school setback to 1,500 feet. Option C combined many of B’s increased setbacks but kept the 2,000‑foot school setback. The board’s amendment to B produced a hybrid that preserves the 2,000‑foot school buffer but also implements several of the broader setback increases and licensing clarifications from version B.

What the ordinance does: As presented by town attorney Dan Sapienza and planning director Cody Bird, the adopted version keeps the larger school setback (2,000 feet), clarifies that the local licensing authority cannot grant variances to setback requirements, increases certain residential and public‑property setbacks, and tightens spacing between licensed marijuana stores. The packet also added a zoning and setback verification procedure: when an applicant fills out a verification form, the planning director or designee has five days to stamp it; that approval date is binding for the licensing authority.

Public reaction: Dozens of residents spoke during public comment. Neighbors near the proposed Globe Flower/Cleveland area location urged the board to preserve larger setbacks, raise concerns about proximity to a licensed home daycare and to heavy child pedestrian activity at the Trailhead activity center and nearby parks. Other commenters pressed for a market‑friendly approach and argued limiting setbacks could be treated as a free‑market restriction; some urged rezoning for dispensaries to industrial areas. Trustees cited both the narrow voter approval margin on marijuana and the town’s duty to protect children and manage legal liability when explaining votes.

Next steps: The ordinance passed on first consideration at this meeting. Any implementation steps (licensing hearings, application reviews and related site‑specific evaluations) will follow the town’s existing licensing and public notice procedures.

Quote: “This version C handles everything that we, as a group of trustees, all pieced together,” Trustee Teets said during debate, while Trustee Gater argued trustees should “keep with what the voters have asked for.”