MANSFIELD — The length of the Mansfield City Council meeting on Tuesday depends on how much more time lawmakers want to spend talking about recreational cannabis dispensaries.
There is not a lot of other legislation on the agenda. It appears dispensaries will be approved here by the state, sooner rather than later.
Mayor Jody Perry on Friday told city Planning Commission members there is not enough time to properly follow the process needed to approve zoning regulation changes needed to specifically oversee the cannabis dispensaries that the state may approve for the city in the next couple of weeks.
That likely means no vote on cannabis dispensary zoning Tuesday, unless lawmakers want to go against the legal advice obtained by the administration.
Without that zoning change, prospective dispensaries have to meet state requirements and local requirements found in existing Mansfield regulations for business districts or industrial districts.
They would also have to get their plans approved by the permitting and development office.
They would not have to meet the specific zoning regulations and operational rules that have been discussed by Perry and City Council for the last several weeks, including that such dispensaries operate only in B-2 (general business) zones.
That’s because officials have determined zoning changes must first go through the Planning Commission during regularly scheduled meetings and that the hastily called special meeting Friday would not suffice.
Perry, who said she still hopes to implement zoning changes that could impact the next wave of cannabis dispensaries, instead has proposed legislation that would limit the number of the retail outlets to three.
During a special meeting last week, council seemed comfortable with allowing four such dispensaries.
Lawmakers are scheduled to vote on repealing the ban on medical marijuana that a previous council approved several years ago.
Also on Tuesday, City Council is scheduled to:
— vote on a bill to amend previously approved legislation honoring organizations that donated funds for a new flag and flag pole at Liberty Park. Donations of $2,700 each came from VFW Post 9943 and VFW Post 3494.
— authorize the public works director to file an application for and accept a grant from the Federal Aviation Administration and the Ohio Dept. of Transportation’s Office of Aviation to design construction plans to rehabilitate runway 14-32 at Mansfield Lahm Regional Airport. The work would be funded through 95 percent federal/state funds and 5 percent local funds.
