The City of Cleveland has imposed a moratorium on new Cannabidiol (CBD) stores and vape shops. The council approved the moratoriums following public hearings Monday night. The CBD moratorium will run for 12 months, while the vape shop one will be in effect for six months.
City Administrator Kevin Harris told the council that they are currently conducting an overhaul of the land use and zoning regulations.
“Basically, this would allow a study period of no more than 12 months from the date of the signing of this bill, and what it will do is allow us to conduct a comprehensive review of CBD retail stores and the potential impact of any potential ordinances,” he said.
According to Harris, the federal government has developed some new regulations and the state is also looking at this industry. Cleveland currently doesn’t have any regulation addressing this business.
Likewise, Harris said the moratorium on any new vape shops will give them time to develop regulations for that type of business as they update the land use and zoning laws. The moratorium will have no effect on businesses currently operating in the city.
City user fees
The city council also held a second hearing on a technology fee for the municipal court. State law allows the city to charge the offender who is found guilty of an offense to be charged a $10 fee to help pay for the technology in the court system.
“We prefer to call it a user fee; if you get a ticket and you are found guilty or make a plea, then you would be the one paying that ten-dollar fee,” Harris said. He noted that this will help take some of the burden from the taxpayers to operate the court system.
The council did not take any action on this issue following the second public hearing.
3-year limit on fee increases
A fourth public hearing was conducted by the council Monday that addressed fees charged by the city for services they offer for a three-year period. Harris said by law enterprise funds such as city sanitation cannot operate in a deficit.
“We have basically went ahead and set the rates, water rates, sewer rates, sanitation, building permits, zoning, court technology any other fees that could exist we want to go ahead and put a three-year pattern on those rates so that way everybody knows up front and you will not see any rate increases at all through FY 2027 with this move.”
The council voted to approve the resolution, which doesn’t freeze the rates at the current level but outlines the fees charged for the next three years.
