After recognizing June as Pride Month with a proclamation, the Hopkinsville City Council accepted zoning recommendations for agricultural transitional districts and approved looking into having a medical marijuana dispensary located in the city at their Tuesday meeting.
Tom Britton the Executive Director of Community and Development Services (CDS) recommended that two parcels of land, AT-1 and AT-2, along Martin Luther King Jr. Way near Bradshaw Road be designated as Agricultural Transitional Districts.
While trying to zone these vacant parcels, Britton says CDS amended their zoning code to allow for land to be designated as transitional zones. If a district is specified as transitional, Britton says the land could be agricultural, residential, commercial or industrial zones depending on location.
The board will vote on Britton’s recommendations at a later meeting.
In the 2023 Kentucky General Assembly, lawmakers voted to legalize medical marijuana in the state which will come into effect in 2025. Christian County is in a seven-county region where at least four medical marijuana dispensaries will be located.
City Attorney Doug Willen shared that city dispensary license applications open in July, however if Hopkinsville was to receive a license before any zoning for the dispensary is established then the city will be bound by state regulations when locating the dispensary.
Willen says the board had a few options including, letting the state handle regional dispensary locations, pass an ordinance prohibiting a dispensary in city limits, have people vote for it in November’s General Election or look into zoning for the dispensary. The council voted to have CDS develop zoning regulations for a dispensary.
Ward Four Council Member, Chuck Crabtree, says before the city opts in to having a dispensary located in the city, he would like for the council to receive feedback from medical professionals and law enforcement.
The council will continue to discuss the possibility of a medical marijuana dispensary being located in Hopkinsville at their future meetings.