In the midst of Delaware’s slow rollout of its recreational marijuana market, lawmakers pass a bill to limit the zoning restrictions counties can place on marijuana dispensaries to help speed up the process.
When Delaware legalized recreational marijuana in April 2023, lawmakers ensured counties could not implement an outright ban on marijuana business, but they did empower county governments to regulate zoning requirements for those businesses.
Sussex County Council jumped on this opportunity and implemented a 3-mile buffer zone between marijuana dispensaries and sensitive locations, such as schools, childcare centers and substance abuse treatment facilities.
This decision rendered it virtually impossible for dispensary license holders to find viable real estate in Sussex County, particularly with almost every municipality in the southern part of the state opting to ban marijuana business.
License holders have also faced challenges in New Castle County, where there is currently a 1,000-foot buffer zone in place.
This bill would limit counties’ buffer zones to 500 feet and prohibit dispensaries from operating only within a half mile of another retail marijuana store, as well as other regulations relating to operation hours.
State Rep. Ed Osienski (D-Newark), who spearheaded the movement to legalize recreational marijuana, is also sponsoring the legislation to limit the zoning restrictions counties can implement.
Rep Osienski argues since some lawmakers from Sussex County voted in favor of the legalization of recreational marijuana (House Bill 2), Sussex County Council's decision ignores the votes cast on behalf of tens of thousands of constituents.
"You're talking probably 60,000 constituents in Sussex County who their representatives in the General Assembly voted for HB 2, but now, again, the county has kind of overrode that representation, and we find ourselves having this limited space to put these up so this could be successful, so these businesses can create jobs and they can provide a safe product to those who consume," Rep. Osienski said.
State Rep. Mike Smith (R-Pike Creek) argues Sussex County Council members were also elected by their constituents and State Rep. Valerie Jones Giltner (R-Georgetown) took Rep. Smith's point further by arguing the bill is an outright override of local control.
"The County Council and County Planning and Zoning would look at the area holistically as far as all the residents involved. At this point, we are asking that we override that — that we override what I elected John Riley and the rest of the County Council in Sussex County to protect and take care of me as a resident, and to look at my property in a holistic fashion when they're doing zoning decision," Rep. Jones Giltner said, urging her colleagues to vote no.
The bill passed in the House with only Democratic support and heads to Gov. Matt Meyer for signature.
