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EUGENE CITY COUNCIL <br />AGENDA ITEM SUMMARY <br />Work Session: Separation of Retail Marijuana Businesses <br />Meeting Date: March 15, 2017 <br />Department: Planning & Development <br />www.eugene-orgov <br />ISSUE STATEMENT <br />Eugene <br />Agenda Item Number: A <br />Staff Contact: Mike McKerrow <br />Contact Telephone Number: 541-682-5288 <br />State standards require medical marijuana dispensaries to have a 1000 foot separation from <br />schools and other medical dispensaries. Recreational marijuana businesses require the same <br />separation from schools but not from each other. Industry representatives recently requested <br />Eugene adopt a 1000 foot separation requirement for new recreational marijuana businesses. <br />State law allows cities to adopt separation standards for these uses as appropriate for their <br />community. <br />BACKGROUND <br />When the state legislature approved medical marijuana dispensaries several years ago and more <br />recently, recreational marijuana sales, Eugene's land use code was not modified. Both businesses <br />are considered as "Specialty Store" in the land use code and are permitted in the C-1 <br />Neighborhood Commercial, C-2 Community Commercial and C-3 Major Commercial zones. The <br />Oregon Liquor Control Commission (OLCC) reviews and issues licenses for recreational marijuana <br />sales. As part of the OLCC process Eugene staff reviews a land use compatibility application for <br />each site to confirm the use is in a permitted zone. <br />Council requested a work session to receive the following information. <br />1. Review the number of retail stores in close proximity to each other and possible impacts. <br />2. Explore the influx of outside investors competing with local businesses and community <br />revenue. <br />3. Compare Eugene's standards for these types of businesses with other Oregon cities. <br />The request for the work session included a proposed outcome of beginning the legislative <br />process to establish a 1,000 foot buffer between new marijuana related businesses. The city also <br />has received a request that a 1,000 foot buffer be created between a day care facility and a new <br />marijuana related business. <br />