Virginia's cannabis retail framework under the Cannabis Control Authority requires buffer distances from schools, daycares and addiction treatment centers; Richmond zoning will overlay these once the CCA opens retail licensing.
Virginia Code Title 4.1 directs the Cannabis Control Authority to license retail cannabis once the General Assembly enables sales. The statute and CCA regulations require minimum buffer distances between licensed retailers and schools, child daycare centers, and substance-use treatment facilities. Richmond's zoning ordinance, Chapter 30 of the Richmond Zoning Code, will apply local use-permit conditions on top of the state buffer. As of 2026 retail licensing is still being launched, so any operator advertising recreational sales in Richmond is operating outside Virginia law and is subject to enforcement by the CCA and Richmond Police.
Operating an unlicensed cannabis retail storefront, or a licensed retailer inside the state-required buffer, can result in license denial, civil penalties and enforcement by RPD and the CCA.
See how Richmond's buffer zones rules stack up against other locations.
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