Bloomfield, NJ Cannabis Regulations: Buffer Zones (2026)

The buffer sits in § 315-39B(9)(e)[4], among the conditional use standards for cannabis retailers in Bloomfield Township. No cannabis retailer can be located within 200 feet of a public or private elementary or secondary school, or of Bloomfield Board of Education home athletic venues. Distance is measured from the closest points of the two properties, so the test runs property to property and not door to door. The Township amended this standard by Ord. No. 22-49 on 8-15-2022 and again by Ord. No. 23-24 on 5-22-2023.

The standards in § 315-39B(9)(e) set a distance only for schools and Board of Education home athletic venues. They print no separate distance from parks or playgrounds. Other location limits do apply. A retailer cannot be located in an historic district, and its premises cannot be in or upon any premises in which a grocery store, delicatessen, indoor food market or other store engaging in retail sales of food operates, or a store that engages in licensed retail sales of alcoholic beverages.

The buffer works on top of the zoning map. Retailers are confined to the CBD Central Business District and the B-2 Neighborhood Business District, plus the Bloomfield Center redevelopment districts described in § 315-39B(9)(a), and the cap of eight retailers Township-wide, with no more than four per sector, holds in every location. Deviations from the conditional use standards require variances.

Other siting rules are tied to the property. Cannabis consumption areas are prohibited both indoors and outdoors, and drive-through services are prohibited. Every site is subject to site plan review by the appropriate land use board before personal use sales begin, irrespective of the prior use of the property. The application must carry a security plan approved by the Bloomfield Police Department.