Monroe extends moratorium on new marijuana businesses

Shown here is the Strawberry Fields dispensary at 300 N. Main St. in Monroe. Monroe will extend its moratorium on new marijuana businesses in the city through Oct. 7, 2023. FILE

Shown here is the Strawberry Fields dispensary at 300 N. Main St. in Monroe. Monroe will extend its moratorium on new marijuana businesses in the city through Oct. 7, 2023. FILE
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Updated Aug 9, 2023
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Monroe will extend its moratorium on new marijuana businesses in the city after it expires Oct. 7, which was decided at this week’s city council meeting.

K. Philip Callahan, the city’s law director, suggested extending the moratorium three to six months so council could “digest” the Nov. 7 election when Ohio voters will decide whether to make legalize recreational marijuana.

Last year, the Ohio Board of Pharmacy approved adding 73 dispensary licenses statewide, including three in Monroe, pushing the city’s total to four.

The current moratorium was put in place in April. The ordinance has no impact on the dispensaries that are open or those in the planning stages.

Dr. Kelly Clark, a council member, said the city, by waiting until after the election, would get “a free look” at how Monroe voters feel about legalizing recreational marijuana.

That vote, she said, could “significantly change the landscape” of marijuana businesses, she said.

Council member Michael Graves, who has been outspoken against marijuana dispensaries in the city, said he didn’t want those businesses “littering (Ohio) 63.” Monroe should invest its time and money attracting businesses that “make the city better,” he said.

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