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Long Beach council asks staff to study buffer zones for smoke shops near schools, parks and elder-care sites
Summary
Councilwoman Kerr asked the city manager to begin amending the municipal code to create buffer zones between tobacco retailers/smoke shops and youth- or elder‑oriented facilities; council members discussed enforcement options and requested a report back, including consideration of nitrous-oxide sales.
Councilwoman Megan Kerr asked the Long Beach City Council on April 7 to direct the city manager to begin a formal review of the municipal code to establish distance-based buffer zones between tobacco retailers and sensitive land uses such as schools, parks, libraries and elder-care facilities.
Kerr told the council a smoke shop recently opened directly across from a high school in her district and that city code contains no current buffer standard for tobacco retailers. “Exposure and access to tobacco products can be a key factor in whether or not a child or high‑school aged student picks up unhealthy habits,” she said, urging staff to research zoning and permitting options and return with recommendations within 120 days.
Council discussion focused on the scope of a staff report and enforcement tools. A council member who identified public‑health research experience urged examining location density and noted other California cities already use zoning to limit retailer proximity to schools. Another council member asked staff to consider hours of operation, cleanliness and loitering rules as part of the broader approach to reduce nuisance impacts.
Councilmember Dugan offered a friendly amendment to ask staff to evaluate whether sales of nitrous oxide — which she said is increasingly sold in smoke shops and marketed with flavored canisters — should be addressed alongside buffer zones. Councillors agreed the nitrous-oxide issue may require a separate process but asked staff to flag the policy pathways in the report.
Several residents spoke in support during the public‑comment period. Karen Rieside, president of the Long Beach Grama Panthers, described senior‑center proximity to smoke shops and concerns about loitering; Carolyn Essex urged grounding the policy in data and asked how enforcement would work.
The council voted to direct staff to prepare a comprehensive report with comparative examples, enforcement options and proposed zoning or permitting amendments. The motion carried.
