Council Clarifies Intent of Marijuana Moratorium

Ordinance to be amended with 18-mo. expiration to coincide with planning & zoning code rewrite

The word “indefinite” will be coming out of a proposed moratorium on recreational marijuana dispensaries in Stow and replaced with an 18-month expiration, as City Council seeks to ensure that the city has the time to add appropriate regulations in the new planning & zoning code for where marijuana could be sold within the city.

At its Aug. 1 meeting, City Council President Cyle Feldman sought to clarify the purpose of the proposed moratorium.

“The idea behind this ordinance, behind this moratorium, is to make sure we get it right, meaning our zoning is being rewritten,” Feldman said.

He explained that he had spoken with the consultant who is overseeing the rewrite of Stow’s planning & zoning code, who indicated that he would provide a report on zoning recommendations for the sale of medical- and recreational-use marijuana in the city in late Fall.

“No one is saying we’re trying to ban or not allow, even though Council has home rule, I think what we’re saying here is ‘Let’s listen to the zoning and planning experts,’" Feldman said.

“The whole idea on (the moratorium) is that we move forward in a smart manner,” he said. “I think it’s important to note we’ve paid a significant amount of money for a zoning code rewrite for this purpose….We have to get it right.”

Council At-Large Jeremy McIntire, co-sponsor of the legislation with Feldman, concurred.

“This legislation doesn’t stop people from smoking marijuana, that law passed,” he said. “This is just looking at it from a zoning perspective. Where’s it going to be distributed. Where is it going to be, if we’re going to allow distribution. Where do we want it to be, if we’re going to allow people to cultivate it, things of that nature. That’s all this is doing.”

“Contrary to somehow we’re going against the will of the people, we’re not," McIntire said. “Issue 2 had nothing to do with, that you approved distribution in the City of Stow. That was just allowed statewide, to allow recreational marijuana in the City of Stow. As Mr. Feldman said, we do have home rule.”

McIntire read from his proposed legislation:

“Pursuant to the City Charter, as well as the Ohio Constitution, this Council also has an inherent power to enact planning, zoning, and business regulation laws that further the health, safety, welfare, comfort and peace of its citizens, including restricting or prohibiting certain business uses; and

WHEREAS, the City as decided to exercise its rights pursuant to Ohio Revised Code 3780.25 and 3796.29 and place an indefinite moratorium on the cultivation, processing, sale, purchase, possession, home grow, use of adult use cannabis, and medical marijuana in its entirety.”

“The city, in this case, has decided to exercise that right so we can take a look at the zoning and get it figured out,” he said.

Ward 1 Councilman Matt Riehl, who was on council in 2017 when Stow established a permanent ban of medical marijuana dispensaries, said he was one of three councilmen who voted against that ordinance. He recommended that the legislation be revised to create an expiration date for the ordinance to coincide with the expected completion of the planning & zoning code rewrite so that council would be forced to revisit the issue.

Planning Director Zach Cowan said that while the consultant would provide recommendations later this Fall, it would be better to wait until the project was fully complete, which would be the Fall of 2025.

“I would love to see a timeline on this, so it doesn’t go on and on and on forever,” Riehl said.

Law Director Drew Reilly was tasked with making revisions to the ordinance to clarify that the moratorium would be a temporary hold until the planning & zoning code rewrite is completed. Reilly mentioned that he would also remove the language regarding the prohibition of “homegrow” as the state law forbids cities from prohibiting residents from growing their own marijuana.

Council At-Large Kyle Herman said he appreciated the discussion and clarification as he felt many residents had a legitimate concern that the moratorium would be open-ended. He agreed that including a timeline would force council to make a final decision.

Herman pointed out that the current state law already limits the placement of dispensaries. “There are already restrictions in place,” he said. “This idea that there’s going to be dispensary rows or dispensaries popping up in residential neighborhoods or backyards or things like that when they’re already limited to commercial areas. They already need to be distanced from schools or places of worship and things like that and they’re not even allowed to be within a mile of each other. And, so, we would already be very limited to having two or three in the city to begin with.”

Council voted 6-0 to withdraw the legislation so that it could be rewritten. Ward 3 Councilman John Baranek was absent.

The revised moratorium legislation will be presented in the next council meeting on Sept. 12.

Ohio became the 24th state to approve recreational marijuana, with 57% of Stow voters approving Issue 2 in November 2023.

Amended Vaping Shop Moratorium Approved

City Council approved 6-0 an amended version of a proposed moratorium on vaping shops to also include an 18-month expiration for the legislation to coincide with the planning & zoning code rewrite.

The ordinance also was changed to include a definition of a “vape shop” as a business that derives at least 25% of its sales from the sale of vaping products, to distinguish those businesses from other types of retail outlets that sell vaping products, such as gas stations.

Business Development Update

During Council’s Planning Committee meeting, Planning Director Zach Cowan provided updates on new business initiatives underway or in the planning stages:

The developer of a new nursing home at the site of the former Stow-Glen nursing home has broken ground to begin construction. Additionally, there are plans for the front of the property, along Kent Rd., for a Sheetz gas station and Chick Fil-A restaurant, along with two unnamed retail buildings. The former independent living building behind the nursing home will be converted to senior apartments.
The former Little Caesar’s site on Kent Rd. will become a Wingstop and the company will be applying for a certificate of occupancy soon, Cowan said.
The First Watch restaurant chain has expressed interest in locating to Stow in the same Kent Rd. area, but a definitive location has not been determined.

Fill Out the Planning Survey

The city is still accepting resident input for the planning & zoning code rewrite project. Cowan said the survey would remain open through the end of August.

Residents can access the survey here.

Route 91 Reconstruction Plans

Reconstruction of Darrow Road (Rt. 91) will begin during the Spring of 2025, with the work broken up into four sections, starting at the border of Munroe Falls.

The project, which will include adding sidewalks to both sides of the road from Munroe Falls to the Hudson border, will take approximately 18 months to complete, according to James McCleary, Transportation Engineer.

Mark your calendars!

The next Stow Sunshine Project club meeting will be August 19 at 7 pm in the Safety Building community room. Police Chief Jeff Film will be the featured speaker and will discuss a number of topics, including: