RICHMOND HEIGHTS, Ohio — With the Ohio Senate considering passage of a proposed amended Senate Bill 56, City Council, on Tuesday (Feb. 11), again opted against taking a vote on placing a six-month moratorium on the operation of recreational marijuana businesses in Richmond Heights.
After a discussion about the moratorium, Council President Bobby Jordan recommended placing the issue on a first reading, meaning council would have up to two more readings before possibly taking a vote.
In the meantime, council put the issue to the city’s Planning and Zoning Commission for a recommendation, as allowing recreational marijuana businesses would include zoning approvals.
The looming amended Senate Bill 56, introduced Jan. 28 by Republican Tipp City Senator Steve Huffman, could have a great impact on council’s eventual vote.
Richmond Heights Police Chief Calvin Williams read to council an update on the Bill, which revealed some key changes.
The bill seeks to merge the state’s medical and adult-use recreational marijuana programs. Under the merged program, all tax revenues from legal cannabis sales would be directed to the state’s general fund.
The original 2023 state legislation had a 10-percent excise tax placed on sales, but amended Senate Bill 56 would increase that to 15 percent.
The original legislation had the host municipalities of cannabis dispensaries receiving 36 percent of that excise tax but, under the revised SB 56, host municipalities would not receive any remuneration.
Richmond Heights Ward 2 Councilman Asu Mook Robinson has been arguing that the city should allow recreational marijuana dispensaries, citing the money the city could take in from hosting such a business.
Jordan said Tuesday that City Council has done its “due diligence to make an educated decision” on the matter, which has been before it for several months. The diligence includes holding a town hall meeting late last summer and inviting to speak before council a state lobbyist on the subject.
Jordan said that delaying a vote further will give residents even more opportunity to voice their opinions on banning such businesses, or accepting them.
Jordan, who has been against the idea of allowing recreational sales in Richmond Heights, added, “We’re not going to continue to drag something forever when we know what’s going to happen down with the state (likely passing the revised SB 56). The state, right now, there’s nobody stopping them from doing what they want to do, and that’s just the way it is in Columbus right now.”
Robinson maintained that council should not act to refrain from the opportunity of generating possible funds from hosting a recreational marijuana dispensary.
Robinson refuted Jordan’s statement, saying that council does not know the eventual outcome of amended SB 56 discussions in Columbus.
“What’s going on in Columbus right now is an ongoing legislative battle,” Robinson said. “So it can go either way.
“But just to say we’re not going to be bothered with it, completely, is totally inappropriate to me.”
Earlier in the meeting, Robinson told his council colleagues, “It (hosting a recreational marijuana dispensary) may not be the golden wand to revenues in generation, but it is generation of some kind. And to totally come up with something (legislation) to say we’re going to stop this completely and not even look at it is totally ludicrous to me.
“There is revenue that will come from recreational marijuana.”
City Council has already passed one six-month moratorium on dispensing recreational marijuana, which expired last October.
The city now allows the dispensing of medical marijuana, but does not have such a dispensary.
Read more from the Sun Messenger.
Richmond Heights City Council, faced with a possible updated state law regulating recreational and medical cannabis sales, elected Tuesday to put off a vote on a six-month moratorium on allowing such dispensaries. Read More
