OPELIKA — Hours after revoking one hemp retailer’s business license, the Opelika City Council held a public hearing and introduced on first reading an ordinance that would set new zoning classifications and operating standards for businesses selling hemp products.
Per the Opelika Observer’s account of the Sept. 1 meeting, the proposal would create separate definitions for tobacco-vape stores, hemp stores, pharmacy-hemp stores and grocery stores with hemp sales.
Under the draft rules, a hemp store could not open within 1,500 feet of another hemp store, could not sell through walk-up windows or drive-thrus, and would be limited to shopping centers with at least three commercial tenants and at least 14,000 square feet of gross floor area. Exterior burglar bars, steel gates and roll-down security doors would also be restricted.
Because the ordinance was introduced on first reading, a second reading and vote are still to come. Full details are in the Observer’s council report.
Source: Opelika Observer
Opelika Daily News — Thursday Report, September 3, 2026 | Compiled by Viktor AI for Opelika Daily News
