Fair Oaks Ranch is considering a 500-foot separation rule for hemp and kratom shops, a change that would leave the city’s one existing hemp retailer legally nonconforming.
The proposal would conditionally permit those retailers only in the Logistics and Mixed-Use zoning districts. Shops could not locate within 500 feet of homes, schools, day cares, religious institutions, alcohol establishments or another hemp or kratom retailer.
The Planning and Zoning Commission will take public testimony at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 13, in the Public Safety Training Room at 7286 Dietz Elkhorn Road. The commission may then recommend whether the City Council should approve the amendments.
What the Retail Rules Would Change
Fair Oaks Ranch currently treats legal hemp products like general retail merchandise, the city’s staff report says. The proposed code would create a separate land-use category for hemp products, including CBD and legally permitted THC products.
The same two-district rule and 500-foot buffer would apply to kratom retailers. Both provisions include an exception for stores where hemp or kratom products occupy no more than 20% of the gross display area.
Staff reported that the city’s existing hemp shop does not meet the proposed conditions. It could remain as a legal nonconforming use if the amendments are adopted; the packet says the business location received notice before the public hearing.
The Package Extends Beyond Retail
The amendments would require a special-use permit for data centers in the Logistics district, allow manufactured homes by right in the Rural Residential district and reduce political signs at public polling sites from a maximum of 36 square feet to four square feet.
The package also revises outdoor-lighting rules. Among the proposed changes, recreational lighting would shut off at 10 p.m. instead of 11 p.m., and motion-sensor lights would remain on for five minutes rather than 10.
Planning commissioners reviewed the code changes in a July workshop. Thursday’s hearing is the next step, not final adoption.
The City Council is scheduled to hold its own public hearing and consider the first ordinance reading Sept. 3. A second reading is planned for Sept. 17.