Final vape shop ordinance vote in April
City of Clinton Mayor Scott Burton listens to Fred Richmond, owner of Tennessee Vapor Factory at 845 Clinch Avenue in Clinton after the March 23 Clinton City Council meeting. (photo:Ben Pounds )
But the council also postponed a second reading on zoning regulations for these stores.
The vote by the council on the one ordinance and postponement on the other came at the Monday, March 23, meeting.
City Manager Roger Houck said votes on the second readings to put both measures into effect will occur during the April 27 meeting, at 5:30 p.m.
Houck told The Courier News it was better to have the final vote on both of them at the same time so they could go into effect simultaneously.
“They go hand in hand,” he said.
The postponed zoning measure from February, if it passes on second reading in April, would, as it now reads, allow for only three such specialty shops per 10,000 residents.
It defines them as stores dedicating 25% or more of their floor space to “electronic cigarettes/vaping devices, E-liquids/cartridges, edibles, concentrates, or oil containing cannabis derivatives (including but not limited to CBD, Delta-8, Delta-9 or similar compounds permitted by law), Kratom, glassware, pipes, vaporizers and other smoking or inhalation devices.”
Shops also have to be at least 1,000 feet from other similar shops and at least 500 feet from day-cares, public or private schools, or public parks.
While these rules would not immediately affect the current eight stores that fit that description in Clinton, it would, if passed, apply to any new stores.
If existing stores change their layouts for six months to no longer have 25% or more space dedicated to the vape or cannabis products, they, too, would have to follow the new regulations if they switched back to more than 25%.
The proposed new zoning ordinance, passed unanimously at the March meeting on first reading, explains how these stores can get licenses.
Matt Widner, city building official, gave details at the meeting.
Either the City Council or a new board created by it would license the shops, acting as the Specialty Shop Board.
This board would issue licenses to new specialty vape and cannabis shops. It would also deal with causes to revoke licenses, including stores that have committed violations.
The licensing ordinance also addresses stores that need to relocate or remodel due to disasters that are not the owner’s fault.
Fred Richmond, owner of Tennessee Vapor Factory at 845 Clinch Ave., spoke at both the February and March meetings about his concerns regarding relocations after disasters.
Widner said the owner has a 12-month period to reapply with no effect on the city’s overall license numbers. The board would still approve the new location, he said.
Richmond told The Courier News that his shop is between a state highway and a railroad right of way, putting it at risk for accidents.
He said the regulations passed on first reading, if they did not address stores having to relocate due to accidents, would be against the Fifth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, concerning private property being taken for public use without compensation.
“I’m a business that has no violations whatsoever, versus all these ones that are already selling to minors,” Richmond said.
“I hope we can get you satisfied or at least as close to satisfied as you can be,” Mayor Scott Burton told Richmond.
The ordinance includes rules about who can own specialty vape shops, regulates the stores’ displays and signage, includes a bond provision of $1,000 for unpaid taxes, and prohibits transferring of licenses.
Shayla Wilson, executive director of Allies for Substance Abuse Prevention of Anderson County, brought the issue of the specialty shops’ zoning to the City Council’s attention at an earlier meeting.
Vape store Changes
The Clinton City Council approved on first reading a new ordinance establishing annual licensing and an appeals process for vape and cannabis-related specialty shops, with a final vote expected April 27.
Council postponed a second reading on zoning regulations so both measures can take effect simultaneously, according to City Manager Roger Houck.
The proposed zoning rules would limit specialty shops to three per 10,000 residents and require distance buffers from other shops, schools, day cares and parks, while not immediately impacting existing businesses.
The licensing ordinance outlines oversight by a Specialty Shop Board, sets ownership and signage rules, includes a $1,000 bond requirement and addresses relocation concerns raised by a local business owner.
