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Plan Commission forwards GDC changes to define smoke shops and tobacco/cigar shops
Summary
The commission voted to send amendments to the Garland Development Code that add a separate "tobacco or cigar shop" use and redefine "smoke shop" to include vaping and other vaporizing products, using a 75% publicly displayed inventory threshold to distinguish the two.
The Garland Plan Commission voted to forward proposed changes to the Garland Development Code (GDC) that would distinguish a new "tobacco or cigar shop" use from a redefined "smoke shop" and explicitly include vaping products in the definition of smoke shop.
Planning staff presented the amendment, saying the tobacco or cigar shop would be defined as "a commercial establishment in which more than 75% of the store's inventory consists of the following tobacco products..." while a smoke shop would be defined as "a commercial establishment that sells products for the smoking, vaping, vaporizing, or consumption of any substance, in which tobacco products make up less than 75% of the store's inventory." "This would ensure that vaping products are included in the definition of a smoke shop use," said Bridal Mulkey of Planning and Development.
Staff also clarified the 75% test applies to publicly displayed inventory rather than revenue, which planners said will make enforcement clearer. The proposal would permit smoke shops only by specific use permit (SUP) in industrial districts while allowing tobacco/cigar shops in certain nonresidential districts with fewer permitting restrictions. The Plan Commission voted to forward the item to City Council with a recommendation of approval; the council will hold the final public hearing on June 2.
