ANSONIA – The Ansonia Planning & Zoning Commission passed a six-month moratorium on new smoke/vape shops on Monday (Sept. 30).
The moratorium is to give the commission time to write regulations for those shops going forward.
The move comes after commission members and police officials said there are problems with vape shops selling marijuana products without a license. Acting on search warrants in September, police found unlicensed products at two locations, Smoke Vibe and Smoker’s Variety and Convenience Store.
Commission members have also raised concerns that vaping and smoking products use flashy, colorful branding, potentially making them attractive to kids.
Khaled Kassem, the owner of Smoke Vibe, was arrested on Sept. 11 allegedly selling marijuana products. He’s due in court on Oct. 18.
The moratorium defines a smoke/vape shop as a store in which at least 10 percent of its space is dedicated to the sale of tobacco or nicotine products. However, P&Z chairman Jared Heon said some flexibility on the definition will be needed to avoid overenforcement.
“If we were to get a Cumberland Farms coming in, the way that that reads, they would technically be denied,” Heon said.
The commission settled on giving the zoning enforcement officer power to override the moratorium in order to avoid lumping convenience stores and gas stations with smoke shops.
Ansonia isn’t alone in applying brakes to the growing smoke shop industry. Derby may pass its own moratorium this month. And, outside the Valley, New York City police shuttered hundreds of shops selling unlicensed weed products over the summer.
Setting up regulations locally is a bit complex.
First the municipal lawyers and consultants have to define what they mean when saying vape shop/smoke shop/tobacco shop/e‑cigarette shop.
Officials could also choose to tackle whether to regulate vape-related merchandise sold inside places such as gas stations and convenience stores.
Vape shops and similar stores are subject to the jurisdiction of the state Department of Consumer Protection.
Ansonia’s moratorium could be extended at a later date, or ended early.
The Ansonia moratorium had been talked about in the commission’s August meeting, and then again at a public hearing on Sept. 16. A second public hearing was held at the Sept. 30 meeting, but no one spoke.
The main text of the moratorium reads:
“As of the effective date of this amendment, the City of Ansonia Planning & Zoning Commission shall not accept, process, or take any action on any application for any premises located within Ansonia when any such development or application involves smoke shop or tobacco use. The reason for this moratorium is to allow the Commission an appropriate and reasonable time to assess if permitting such a use is appropriate within the city and/or drafting regulations permitting such a use.”
