ST. LOUIS — The St. Louis Board of Aldermen voted 14-0 Friday, Oct. 16, to approve new zoning rules for smoke shops and send the measure to Mayor Cara Spencer, according to the city’s legislative records.
Board Bill 81 passed as part of a consent vote. The city’s bill history lists delivery to the mayor as its latest action.
Sponsored by Alderman Thomas Oldenburg, the measure would give smoke shops a separate definition in the zoning code and place them among conditional uses in several commercial and industrial districts.
The published text says the businesses currently fall under general retail rules. Its stated purpose is to provide additional community input in permitting and a process for addressing potential effects on nearby properties.
The definition covers premises dedicated to tobacco products, electronic cigarettes and related merchandise. Grocery stores, supermarkets, convenience stores and similar retailers selling those products only as an ancillary part of their business would be excluded from the smoke-shop definition.
The bill also distinguishes smoke shops from dispensaries defined elsewhere in the zoning code.
Friday’s vote is a new step beyond the final-passage calendar previously reported by VOTP News STL. The text calls for the ordinance to take effect upon passage and mayoral approval; the posted record reviewed for this report documents passage and delivery, rather than a completed mayoral approval.
Residents and business owners can review the full text, roll call and legislative history on the city’s website.
Sources: Board Bill 81 legislative history; Oct. 16 roll-call record; Published bill text.
