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ANSONIA-DERBY – Officials in Ansonia and Derby want to get a handle on the proliferation of smoke shops and vape shops in their cities.
Ansonia is about to put a six-month moratorium on new shops. A public hearing was held in front of the city’s planning and zoning commission on Sept. 16 and a second hearing is scheduled for Sept. 30. Click here for a previous story.
In Derby, members of the planning and zoning commission are also moving toward a moratorium. They talked about it at a meeting on Sept. 17 and said they’ll revisit the issue at a meeting in October.
Right now vape and smoke shops are unregulated locally. Officials said that’s a problem.
“While smoke shops can serve as legitimate businesses, we have seen an increase in the number of incidents indicating that many, if not all, are distributing illegal marijuana products,” Ansonia Police Chief Wayne Williams said.
In Derby the concern is that traditional stores can close and then be replaced by vape or smoke shops with no input from the government. It happened when Altimari’s – an Italian deli that was a staple on Elizabeth Street – closed. The building was sold and a vape shop is now taking up part of the building. It’s been mentioned twice at local Derby meetings.
“These places are popping up all over the place. There’s a few of them in Derby already. And they are kind of offensive with the lighting and things like that. Really there is nothing stopping them,” said Raymond Sadlick, a member of the Derby Planning and Zoning Commission.
The moratoriums being talked about won’t close existing shops. The idea is to stop new shops from opening while officials decide how to write the rules. The options include everything from doing nothing to outright banning new vape or smoke shops from opening up.
It’s not a discussion that’s unique to Ansonia and Derby. Milford officials are talking about prohibiting vape shops. News stories of stores or people busted for selling cannabis without a license are plentiful. This column explains some of the nuances in existing state law.
Norwalk wants to “crack down” on the shops after a spike in illegal cannabis sales, according to The Hour newspaper.
The Norwalk news mirrors the police chief’s concern in Ansonia.
Williams told The Valley Indy that search warrants were issued at two smoke shops, Smoke Vibe on Bridge Street and Smoker’s Variety and Convenience Store on Maple Street, earlier this month. Lt. Patrick Lynch said that marijuana was being sold at both stores.
Additionally, Khaled Kassem – the owner of Smoke Vibe on 50 Bridge St. – was arrested on Sept. 11 “for items located at Smoke Vibe,” according to Williams. The Connecticut court database shows Kassem is due in court on Oct. 18 to answer to a felony charge of possession with intent to sell marijuana.
Additional details were not available.
The electronic cigarette industry has exploded in recent years. It offers customers a different way to deliver nicotine or marijuana to customers. At the same time, recreational marijuana has been legalized in states across the country.
The number of vape shops (or electronic cigarette shops) grew an average of 18 percent per year between 2018 and 2023 in the U.S., according to IBISWorld, an industry research group.
The same organization said there were 9,331 electronic cigarette or vape shops in the U.S. in 2023.
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.
