The Crestview Hills City Building. Photo provided | The City of Crestview Hills

The Kenton County Planning Commission approved zoning regulations for medical cannabis businesses in Crestview Hills this week.

The commission cast a unanimous vote for zoning regulations for medical cannabis dispensaries and safety compliance facilities at their meeting on Tuesday. The zoning amendment will now return to the city council, for two public readings and a vote.

The legalization of medical cannabis in Kentucky came about on March 31, 2023, when Gov. Andy Beshear signed Senate Bill 47 into law. The law, which takes effect on Jan. 1, 2025, enabled the regulation of medical marijuana statewide and established the administration of such regulation under the Cabinet for Health and Family Services and the newly-established Kentucky Medical Cannabis Program.

The law established five kinds of allowable facilities: cultivating centers where the cannabis would be grown, processing facilities where the plants are refined for medical use, hybrid facilities where both cultivation and processing would take place, dispensaries and safety facilities where products are tested to ensure they’re safe to use.

The unofficial results of the Crestview Hills cannabis question for the 2024 general election. Table provided | Kentucky Sec. of State

Like many other cities in the region, Crestview Hills put the issue to a vote on the November general election ballot, where 55% of the city’s voters cast votes in favor of allowing medical cannabis businesses.

If approved, the final zoning change will allow for the establishment and operation of cannabis safety compliance facilities as permitted uses within Crestview Hill’s low-rise office park, high-rise office park, and research park zones. Dispensaries would be allowed within the city’s shopping center, low-rise office park, high-rise office park and research park zones. Businesses cannot be established within 1,000 feet of a school or daycare center.

A map showing zones in Crestview Hills where dispensaries could operate, set off in blue, green and pink. The colored circles represent buffer zones around schools and daycare centers. NOTE: Disregard the legend entry about Boone County Schools. Click for a full sized image. Map provided | Kenton County Planning and Development Services
A map showing zones in Crestview Hills where safety compliance facilities could operate, set off in blue and green. The colored circles represent buffer zones around schools and daycare centers. NOTE: Disregard the legend entry about Boone County Schools. Click for a full sized image. Map provided | Kenton County Planning and Development Services

Due to limited industrial space in Crestview Hills, the city did not seek a recommendation for the other business types established under state law. The planning professionals with the county were unsure if the law mandated the regulation of all business types upon voter approval and recommended the city consult with its attorneys before finalizing regulations.

The Crestview Hills City Council will vote to finalize the commission’s recommendation in the coming weeks.

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