Doña Ana County, NM Cannabis Regulations: Buffer Zones (2026)

Section 350-502G(2) of the Unified Development Code bars any cannabis establishment, cannabis consumption area, or cannabis courier from locating within 300 feet of a residential area, a K-12 school, or a day-care center that existed when the license was sought; commercial schools and colleges serving adults 18 and older are excluded from that protection. The measurement runs as the shortest direct line between the actual property limits of the protected use and the actual limits of the licensed cannabis premises, not a walking or driving distance.

Section 350-502G(3) layers on a second buffer: cannabis retailers and consumption areas also cannot sit within 300 feet of another cannabis retailer, another consumption area, or a residential area, measured the same way between the two licensed premises. That residential-area distance is the only one of the buffers that can be reduced, and only through a special use permit reviewed at a public hearing before the Planning and Zoning Commission. Outdoor cannabis consumption areas carry their own separate 30-foot setback from any public right-of-way to keep secondhand smoke away from passersby, and must be enclosed by a six-foot solid wall or fence when open to consumers.

For cannabis microbusinesses, microbusiness producers, and producers sited in a residential area, § 350-502G(10) additionally requires a 12-foot landscaped buffer outside the fenced area with a six-foot solid wall or fence and plantings giving at least 50% visual obstruction.