NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING
NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the City Council of the City of Opelika will hold a Public Hearing on Tuesday, September 1, 2026, at 6:00 p.m. in the Courtroom of the Opelika Municipal Court Building, 300 Martin Luther King Boulevard, Opelika, Lee County, Alabama.
PURPOSE
The purpose of said Public Hearing will be to consider the adoption of an ordinance to amend Ordinance Number 124-91 (entitled “Zoning Ordinance of the City of Opelika”) adopted on September 17, 1991. At said Public Hearing all who desire to be heard shall have the opportunity to speak for or in opposition to the adoption of the following ordinance:
ORDINANCE NO. __
AN ORDINANCE TO AMEND THE TEXT OF THE ZONING ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF OPELIKA
BE IT ORDAINED by the City Council (the “City Council”) of the City of Opelika, Alabama (the “City”) as follows:
Section 1. Amendment. That Ordinance 124-91 entitled “Zoning Ordinance of the City of Opelika, Alabama”, adopted on September 17, 1991, as amended, is further amended in the following respect:
(a) That Section 2.2 DEFINITIONS is further amended to add the following definitions of “Tobacco-Vape Store”, “Hemp Store”, “Pharmacy-Hemp Store” and “Grocery Store With Hemp Sales”.
TOBACCO-VAPE STORE—A business establishment utilized primarily for the sale of tobacco, hookah, or electronic smoking device products and accessories, or any combination thereof, and in which the sale of other products is merely incidental.
HEMP STORE—A package liquor store or other business establishment with a Consumable Hemp Products Specialty Retailer License from the ABC Board to sell consumable hemp.
PHARMACY-HEMP STORE—A pharmacy licensed by the Alabama State Board of Pharmacy with a Consumable Hemp Product Pharmacy License from the ABC Board to sell consumable hemp.
GROCERY STORE WITH HEMP SALES—A grocery store with a Consumable Hemp Products Retail Food Store License from the ABC Board to sell consumable hemp and that dedicates: (i) a minimum of 75 percent of the store’s selling area to the sale of food items listed in this subdivision; and (ii) at least 14,000 square feet of the store’s footprint to the sale of food items.
(b) That the use categories in the matrix table in Section 7.3, as amended, are further amended to provide for the use categories of “Tobacco-Vape Store”, “Hemp Store”, “Pharmacy-Hemp Store” and “Grocery Store With Hemp Sales”, as follows:
[see table below – section 7.3 C. Use Categories]
Except as specifically amended or changed herein, all other use categories as shown in the matrix table shall remain in full force and effect.
(c) That a new Section 8.28.6 entitled “Hemp and Tobacco Standards for Use” is added to read as follows:
Section 8.28.6 CBD Hemp and Tobacco Standards for Use
A. Purpose and Intent
The purpose and intent of this section is to regulate hemp stores, which may have secondary effects on the neighboring areas and the community as a whole. These regulations shall apply to those establishments licensed by the City that sell hemp, CBD, tobacco, or electronic smoking devices as a primary use. These regulations shall not apply to establishments that sell these products as accessory products in groceries or pharmacies.
The State of Alabama through the Alabama Alcoholic Beverage Control Board provides regulations regarding the licensing and operation of hemp and CBD stores and operators. Nothing in this section is intended to authorize or permit any establishment in violation of any city; county, state or federal ordinance, code or statue. The City has determined that this section is necessary to supplement other regulations to establish reasonable regulations on this use and any effects it may have on adjoining properties or the City and its residents.
B. Special Standards
Tobacco-vape stores must comply with the following requirements and any conditions required through Conditional Use approval:
- No sales shall be conducted through a walk-up window or drive-through.
- Burglar bars, steel gates, and steel-roll down doors or shutters are prohibited on the exterior of a structure when visible from any public or private street. Interior security burglar bars, steel gates and roll down doors shall allow 80 percent visibility into the tenant space and shall be fully retractable during business hours of operation.
Hemp Stores must comply with the following requirements and any conditions required through Conditional Use approval: - No hemp store shall be permitted within a radius of 1,500 feet of any other hemp store. This distance shall be measured from door to door.
- No sales shall be conducted through a walk-up window or drive-through.
- Hemp stores shall only be allowed in shopping centers that:
a. Contains three or more commercial tenants with a mix of grocery stores, pharmacies, restaurants, or consumer shopping good stores;
b. contains at least 14,000 square feet of gross floor area. - Burglar bars, steel gates, and steel-roll down doors or shutters are prohibited on the exterior of a structure when visible from any public or private street. Interior security burglar bars, steel gates and roll down doors shall allow 80 percent visibility into the tenant space and shall be fully retractable during business hours of operation.
Section 2. Severability. If any section, clause, provision or portion of this Ordinance shall be held to be invalid or unconstitutional by any court of competent jurisdiction, said holding shall not affect any other section, clause, provision or portion of this Ordinance which is not in or of itself invalid or unconstitutional.
Section 3. Repeal of Conflicting Ordinances. Any ordinance or part thereof in conflict with provisions of this Ordinance be and the same are hereby repealed.
Section 4. Effective Date. This Ordinance shall become effective upon its adoption, approval and publication as required by law.
Section 5. Publication. This Ordinance shall be published in a newspaper of general circulation in the City of Opelika, Lee County, Alabama.
Section 6. Codification. Codification of this Ordinance in the Zoning Ordinance of the City of Opelika is hereby authorized and directed
ADOPTED AND APPROVED this the day of __, 2026.
END
All interested persons are invited to attend the public hearing and be heard. Written comments concerning the above matter may be mailed to the City Clerk at P.O. Box 390, Opelika, AL 36803 at any time prior to the public hearing and may be further submitted to the City Council at the meeting and the public hearing.
Please contact Brian Weiss, the City’s ADA Contact Person, at 334-705-5134 at least two (2) working days prior to the meeting if you require special accommodations due to any disability.
WITNESS my hand this the 6th day of August, 2026.
/s/ Russell A. Jones, MC
CITY CLERK OF THE CITY OF OPELIKA, ALABAMA
LEGAL RUN 08/06/2026
