TO: Honorable Mayor & Members of the North Port Commission
FROM: Peter D. Lear, CPA, CGMA, City Manager
TITLE: Ordinance No. 2017-11, Second Reading, Petition No. TXT-17-062, Amending the City of North Port Unified Land Development Code and the Administrative Code of the City of North Port to update code language related to cannabis dispensing facilities and medical marijuana treatment centers to be consistent with Florida Constitution Article X, Section 29 and 2017 Senate Bill 8-A.
Recommended Action
Approve Ordinance No. 2017-11, Petition No. TXT-17-062
Background Information
The petition was advertised in a newspaper of general circulation within the City of North Port on August 2, 2017, September 21, 2017, and September 30, 2017 pursuant to the provisions of Section 166.041(3)(a), Florida Statutes and Section 9.01(b) of the Charter of the City of North Port, and Chapter 1, Article II, Section 1-12 of the City's Unified Land Development Code (ULDC) as amended.
On November 22, 2016, the City Commission of the City of North Port adopted Ordinance No. 2016-33, which amended the City of North Port Unified Land Development Code to allow for medical cannabis dispensing facilities to locate within the City of North Port provided they meet the requirements of the ordinance. An amendment was made to the motion, at the adoption hearing, to add a requirement for an 800-foot buffer between any proposed medical cannabis dispensing facility and a residential property. City Commission directed staff to perform an analysis on the impact of this buffer and to return with an update. Staff was also directed to provide an update regarding the section of the ordinance that discusses lease requirements and with information regarding the regulations in cities which already have a medical cannabis dispensing facility located in their boundaries.
Upon conducting the analysis, staff found that the 800-foot buffer added during the adoption hearing was severely limiting to t...
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