By Daniel Schmidt
AUBURN — The Auburn City Council on May 19 approved a zoning ordinance amendment that formally carves out where the city’s newly regulated consumable hemp retailers can set up shop.
It is the latest local move in a months-long effort to bring the city in line with sweeping new state hemp laws the state legislature approved last year.
The amendment passed 6-1, with Ward 5 Council Member Sonny Moreman casting the lone vote against it. Ward 1 Council Member Connie Fitch Taylor and Ward 2 Council Member Kelley Griswold were not present at Tuesday’s meeting.
The text amendment stems from Alabama’s HB445, which the legislature passed in 2025, authorizing the Alabama Alcoholic Beverage Control Board to regulate all consumable hemp products by requiring licensure of manufacturers, wholesale distributors and retailers.
The state law, enacted in response to the 2018 federal Farm Bill, established stricter regulations on hemp edibles, beverages and topicals.
Moreman was critical of the ordinance, effectively equating passing it to endorsing the sale and consumption of consumable hemp products.
“Even though I appreciate the restriction the state of Alabama put on these products, I believe the passage of any hemp ordinance, or consumable hemp product, to be a mistake,” Moreman said. “If we pass this, we’re legalizing the sale of consumable hemp products with the mistaken belief that they’re safe and good for our community. And I do not believe that is true, so I’ll be voting no.”
After Moreman spoke, Ward 3 Council Member Beth Witten rushed to clarify that the council was not voting to approve the sale of consumable hemp products, just how and where they are sold within city limits.
Before Tuesday’smeeting, the city had already moved on the issue at the municipal level.
On March 17, the council adopted an initial consumable hemp products ordinance that defined local offenses, set up the city’s license-review process and regulated the distances between hemp retailers and certain other uses such as churches and schools.
It also gave the council a mechanism to revoke or refuse to renew a city business license following certain convictions.
The newly approved zoning amendment adds a zoning-perspective framework on top of that existing municipal regulation.
Three retailer types have now been added to the zoning ordinance: specialty retailers, pharmacies and retail food stores.
Under the new definitions, a specialty retailer must either already hold a package liquor license or sell only consumable hemp products.
Pharmacies are authorized to sell topical and sublingual hemp products, but only within stores licensed by both the Alabama State Board of Pharmacy and the ABC.
Retail food stores can sell consumable hemp beverages only — and only inside a supermarket-style store that dedicates at least 75% of its selling area, and at least 14,000 square feet of its footprint, to food sales.
The amendment also lays out where each type of retailer can operate.
All three are now allowed as conditional uses in most of Auburn’s mixed-use, downtown and corridor commercial districts.
Pharmacies, however, are the only consumable hemp retailers permitted in the city’s Limited Development District, and even then only within a neighborhood shopping center.
Hemp retailers are not permitted in Auburn’s neighborhood conservation, residential, historic-downtown or industrial districts.
In other news, the council:
- Approved a special events retail alcohol license for Friendship Foods, Inc., which is doing business as Country’s Barbecue at 255 Heisman Drive.
- Approved retail beer and retail table wine licenses for Sushi K, which is doing business as K Sushi at 1642 S. College St., Suites B and C.
- Approved a $53,475 contract with Adams Construction & Associates for the FY26 Facilities Seal Coating and Restriping Project.
- Approved a $48,676 contract with Fotokite US for the purchase of a tethered drone system for the Public Safety Department.
- Approved an infrastructure development agreement with Holland Homes, which is doing business as College Crossing Development, for the Hillcroft Residential Subdivision.
- Approved a $58,381 contract with SHI International Corp. to renew the Palo Alto Unit 42 Cybersecurity Retainer.
- Accepted a public right-of-way and public utility easement located on Grove Hill Road, north of Kentwood Drive, from the city of Auburn for the Grove Hill Road extension right-of-way dedication plat.
- Granted a drainage and utility easement to the Water Works Board for the water main relocation associated with the E. University Drive and Summertrees culvert replacement.
- Accepted public rights-of-way and public utility easements from the city of Auburn for the Will Buechner Parkway right-of-way, which serves as a connector between MLK Drive (AL 14) and Richland Road.
- Accepted public rights-of-way and easements located within the Woodward Oaks PDD, north of Woodward Oaks Trail, from Clayton Properties Group for Phase 6 of the Woodward Oaks Subdivision.
- Accepted public easements and rights-of-way located at 2609 Hamilton Road from Cleveland Brothers, Inc. for the Woodson Hills Subdivision.
- Accepted a temporary construction easement from Fabargus, LLC and approved $36,400 in compensation for Phase 1 of the North Donahue Drive Widening Project.
- Accepted a warranty deed from Fabargus, LLC and approved $190,000 in compensation for Phase 1 of the North Donahue Drive Widening Project.
- Approved the annexation of approximately 2 acres of the Owens Family Remnant property located near the intersection of North Donahue Drive and Shug Jordan Parkway.
- Approved the rezoning of approximately 2 acres of the Owens Family Remnant property from Rural to a Comprehensive Development District zoning district near the intersection of North Donahue Drive and Shug Jordan Parkway.
- Approved applying the Planned Development District designation to approximately 58.92 acres currently zoned Comprehensive Development District and Development District Housing for the Shug Jordan Commercial PDD.
- Approved a commercial and entertainment use for contractor buildings located at 1009 Country Club Drive.
- Approved a performance residential use for townhomes located at 424 Harris Avenue.
- Approved a conditional use for a mixed use development located on the northeast side of the North Donahue Drive and Shug Jordan Parkway intersection.
- Approved a concurrence with the Industrial Development Board regarding KettenWulf, Inc. and KettenWulf Property.
