The City of Hamilton is one step closer to allowing its first marijuana dispensary. Who wins that title may come down to the difference of a single minute.
Council members heard testimony Wednesday night from three companies that wish to build in the city’s Taft Place/Governors Hill Neighborhood.
Cascade Southern Ohio LLC submitted its application on Aug. 15 at 12:00 a.m. GTI Ohio LLC sent its materials to the city the same day at 12:01 a.m. A third applicant, Jushi RJK OH LLC, threw its name in the hat days later.
But only one may be located in the same one mile radius.
“All three of them are located within a couple hundred yards [of] each other. They're actually all three very close to each other,” said Lauren Nelson, planning director for the city.
The zoning ordinance dictates priority is given to the first application that earns council’s vote. But if all three are greenlit during the same meeting, approval will be given to the earliest submitted application. That would make Cascade Southern Ohio the winner.
Rob Zimmerman, a lawyer who spoke on behalf of GTI Ohio, alleged Nelson told the company it could only submit at 12:01 a.m. and did not give other applicants the same information.
“We're very concerned, as you can understand I'm sure, about the apparent inconsistent treatment of applicants,” Zimmerman said.
What’s the difference?
Cascade Southern Ohio wishes to place its fifth UpLift Ohio dispensary in a vacant 5,800 square foot space at 877 NW Washington Blvd., which also houses a Shooters Sports Grill. It anticipates employing up to 45 people, who could serve up to 400 daily visitors.
“We'd be using a building that has not been occupied for some time, so we think it's really a happy circumstance,” said company representative Benjamin McBride.
GTI Ohio is vying to build a 2,000 square foot building at 787 NW Washington Blvd., near El Mariachi restaurant. The facility would be the company’s sixth Rise Dispensary in Ohio and employ 20 people. The application anticipates up to 300 daily customers.
“We know that security is an issue,” Zimmerman said. “We're very confident that your law enforcement will not experience anything negative.”
If Jushi RJK OH’s proposal is approved, the company would take over Applebee’s overflow parking at 1520 Main St. to build a 2,400 square foot facility called Beyond Hello. The company already operates seven other dispensaries in the state, and it expects to hire up to 14 employees and serve as many as 300 customers each day.
“I think the design complements the Main Street corridor,” said Ian Jones, the company’s architect.
City council has the final say, Nelson said.
“They are the ultimate decision makers,” she said. “Things that may have a negative impact on the community in a variety of ways — the city wants to have oversight.”
Second readings and votes on each application are planned for Nov. 12, according to city documents.
Which way will the vote go?
Council members chose not to share their thoughts Wednesday. They narrowly decided in July to abandon the city’s ban on marijuana-related activities.
At the time, Mayor Pat Moeller and council members Eric Pohlman and Timothy Naab voted against permitting dispensaries, citing concerns for Hamilton’s youth, public safety and personal reasons, respectively.
But the remaining four council members voted to allow dispensaries under clear conditions. For example, no dispensary may be placed in a historic or residential district, or within 1,000 feet of a school or childcare facility.
Nelson said the reversal was the result of officials’ “due diligence into what it looked like in other communities that moved forward right away with dispensaries,” following the statewide legalization of recreational cannabis in 2023.
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