Villa Hills City Council discussed an ordinance Wednesday evening that would bar medical cannabis facilities from operating within city limits.
Kentucky’s medical cannabis program was formed in 2023 via Senate Bill 47. The legal sale of medical marijuana is set to begin Jan. 1, 2025, but the passage of House Bill 829 in the 2024 legislative session accelerates the timeline for the licensing of medical marijuana businesses.
According to HB 829, the Cabinet for Health and Family Services is supposed to release the regulatory framework for dispensary license applications by July 1 with the review and approval of applications to come after. This is meant to give cannabis producers enough time to have products ready to sell come Jan. 1.
SB 47 gave local governments the option to opt out of the medical cannabis program before licenses became active in 2025. With licenses now set to be greenlit sooner than originally anticipated, HB 829 ensures localities still have the discretion to restrict medical marijuana operations.
But HB 829 includes a provision that allows local governments to prohibit cannabis operations in their jurisdictions before Jan. 1, 2025, even if a business is granted a license to operate within that jurisdiction prior to a local government’s decision. That means that a license granted to a business in 2024 could be nullified if the jurisdiction the business is located in opts out of the program before Jan. 1.
Local governments can opt out by passing an ordinance that outright bans medical marijuana operations or by passing a resolution that places the matter in the hands of voters.
If a local government chooses to ban medical marijuana operations, it can roll back that policy through an ordinance or a resolution that lets voters decide. Voters can also petition to put the issue on the ballot by gathering signatures from at least 10% of registered voters in the affected area.
Councilmember Cathy Stover mentioned that space in the city suitable for cannabis operations is scarce. Under the law, medical cannabis operations cannot be within 1,000 feet of schools or licensed daycares.
Licenses for cannabis dispensaries will be issued to businesses in commercial and retail zones, while cultivation, processing and production businesses must be located in spaces zoned for industrial purposes, said City Administrator Craig Bohman.
“The only possible sites within Villa Hills for cultivation, processing and production are along River Road,” Stover said. “The only areas where there’s commercial zoning is the AmeriStop strip mall and inside Sanctuary, both of which are within 1,000 feet of a school or daycare, so therefore a dispensary would not be permitted there.”
While there is industrial property along River Road in Villa Hills that a cannabis processor or cultivator could, in theory, use for their operations, Bohman said those zones lack the utilities needed to support those businesses.
“Cultivation is required to be inside–it would be hydroponic–and there’s no water. So, we don’t have water lines in the areas that can handle that. Then there’s even no sewer, so we couldn’t remove the water,” said Bohman.
Stover noted that if Villa Hills opts out of the program, legal cardholders will still be able to legally consume marijuana products in the city.
“Since there’s limited availability here, it’s unlikely that anyone would request a license for a medical cannabis business. However, the Administration Committee, and as Mr. Walsh said, the Safety Committee is suggesting to council to pass an ordinance to ensure that no medical cannabis business could operate within the city,” Stover said.
An official vote on the ordinance could happen at the council’s next meeting in June, said Bohman.
“By saying no now, we leave open the option if a developer comes along with the pocketbook to make infrastructure happen to decide to put something in like that on River Road later, the future Council can consider that,” Bohman said.
