Changes made by the Flossmoor Village Board could pave the way for a cannabis dispensary in town somewhere other than Vollmer Road, though no specific proposal for one is on the table.
The village board voted unanimously on Tuesday, Jan. 18, to approve its consent agenda, including an amendment to its Zoning Regulations for Cannabis Dispensing Organizations ordinance. The change removes a requirement for such organizations to be located along Vollmer Road.
In a report to the board, Building and Zoning Administrator Scott Bugner noted cannabis-dispensing organizations were added in 2019 as a special use in B-3 and B-6 zoned districts and subject to certain conditions — among them the limitation to Vollmer Road only.
But he said the village is in a position to acquire property along Governors Highway and Kedzie Avenue in the southern triangle of the intersection. It also owns properties on 198th Street and Crawford Avenue in southwest Flossmoor. Some of those properties may be more desirable to dispensaries because sites on Vollmer Road are limited, Bugner wrote.
Bugner noted all other conditions for cannabis dispensaries would remain, in addition to any regulations imposed by the state. The change was recommended by a unanimous vote of the plan commission.
The consent agenda also included a rezoning of 19725 Governors Highway from R-1 Single Family Residential District to B-3 Planned Business Center District.
The property, vacant for roughly two years according to a report by Bugner, is two parcels on the east side of Governors Highway that formerly housed Sunnycrest Nursery on roughly 1.49 acres.
The properties to the north and south are already zoned B-3, with the entire southern triangle there designated for retail and business uses. The owner of the property is in the process of deeding it to the village, according to Bugner’s report.
The village’s Plan Commission voted unanimously to recommend rezoning the property.
Village Manager Bridget Wachtel noted while Flossmoor had not been provided specific plans to review for the property as of Jan. 21, there is interest in using it.
“The village was trying to be proactive with regards to zoning and this property in particular,” she said. “Coincidentally, the Village has been approached by a prospective user, a dispensary positioned to receive licenses, one of which they would like to use in Flossmoor, for this location.”