Medical marijuana businesses will be allowed to operate in Erlanger starting next year, following a vote by the Erlanger City Council last week.
The City Council voted 5-3 in favor of zoning the business site. Council members Tyson Hermes, Jennifer Jasper Lucas, Vicki Kyle, Diana Nicely and Rebecca Reckers voted in favor of the zoning. Council members Don Skidmore, Renee Skidmore and Renee Wilson voted against the zoning. Council member Tom Cahill did not attend the meeting.
The ordinance received a favorable recommendation from the Kenton County Planning Commission in July. Image courtesy of Florence City Council and Joshua Hunt.
The ordinance allows medical marijuana cultivation, processing, production and safety-compliant facilities to operate within the city's business parks, flex industrial zones and general industrial zones. Meanwhile, dispensaries can operate in residential office conversions, neighborhood commercial, community commercial, highway commercial and mixed-use districts. Dispensaries cannot operate within 1,000 feet of a school or daycare.
Cities and counties can regulate medical marijuana in one of three ways: ban it outright, set zones where the businesses are allowed, or give residents the power to decide on a ballot.
Medical marijuana was legalized in Kentucky on March 31, 2023, when Governor Andy Beshear signed Senate Bill 47 into law. The law, which takes effect on January 1, 2025, allows for the regulation of medical marijuana statewide and establishes regulatory oversight under the Department of Health and Family Services and the newly created Kentucky Medical Marijuana Program.
The law allows for five types of facilities: cultivation centers, where cannabis is grown; processing facilities, where the plant is refined for medical use; hybrid facilities, where both cultivation and processing take place; and dispensaries and safety facilities, where testing is done to ensure the product is safe.
Medical marijuana businesses wanting to locate in Erlanger would be able to begin operating in the city starting Jan. 1, 2025, as long as they comply with state licensing and management requirements and comply with Erlanger's zoning regulations.
