Passaic, NJ Cannabis Regulations: Buffer Zones (2026)

Passaic permits recreational and licensed cannabis businesses only as a conditional use in the M-1 and M-2 industrial zones under § 317-23. Subsection E(1) requires the applicant to already hold a license as a 'cannabis business' under Chapter 232, Recreational Cannabis Establishments, and to meet every condition and requirement that chapter imposes before the zoning conditional use can even be considered, the zoning approval doesn't substitute for the separate Chapter 232 permit process, which itself requires an annual permit to own or operate. The buffer itself, in § 317-23E(2), bars any part of the lot from sitting within 1,000 feet of a public facility, park, athletic field, or public or private school, with the distance measured along the street or highway the lot fronts rather than as a straight line, a meaningfully different, and often longer, measurement in a dense street grid like Passaic's.

Subsection E(3) carves out one exception to the general M-1/M-2 confinement: a cannabis business may also locate in a preexisting industrial use within 1,000 feet of an M-1 or M-2 zone, measured the same way, letting an existing industrial building just outside the cannabis zones still qualify. Because § 232-1 states Passaic's intent to prohibit cannabis dispensaries while permitting other licensed cannabis businesses, the buffer and zone confinement in § 317-23E work alongside Chapter 232's licensing cap to keep the industry small and located away from schools, parks, and other sensitive uses.