Under New York Cannabis Law and Office of Cannabis Management rules, retail dispensaries must keep minimum distances from schools and houses of worship. Suffolk-area towns can layer additional buffers within OCM limits.
New York Cannabis Law (2021) and OCM regulations set baseline buffer rules: a licensed adult-use retail dispensary cannot be located within 500 feet of school grounds (200 feet within New York City) or within 200 feet of a house of worship, measured from entrance to entrance. Suffolk County opted in to retail dispensaries, but each town that did not opt out controls local zoning. Towns including Brookhaven, Smithtown, and Babylon have adopted additional setbacks from parks, playgrounds, and other dispensaries within the limits OCM allows. Applicants must show proof of compliance with both state and local buffer rules during the OCM and town site plan process.
Operating within prohibited buffers, opening without OCM license, or violating local site plan conditions can lead to OCM enforcement, license revocation, and town zoning penalties.
See how Suffolk County's buffer zones rules stack up against other locations.
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