Benton County moves to ban future marijuana stores

The Benton County Commission moved Tuesday morning to ban future marijuana sales in the unincorporated areas of the county.

The commission voted to amend the county code to prohibit all marijuana retail sales. The ban would apply to new stores and would prevent existing stores that close from being replaced.

The proposal must be reviewed by the county’s planning commission and the state Department of Commerce before it takes effect.

The move is inspired by plans for a store at the edge of West Richland. However, it cannot retroactively apply the ban to the plan by The Garden LLC, operating as Nirvana Cannabis Co., to open a store in an old house zoned for commercial use at the edge of West Richland.

Washington voters legalized recreational marijuana in 2012. Initiative 502 failed in Benton and Franklin counties, leading to local bans by the cities of Pasco, Richland, Kennewick, West Richland and Franklin County.

This story was originally published August 1, 2017 at 6:06 PM with the headline "Benton County moves to ban future marijuana stores."