Stamford, CT Cannabis Regulations: Buffer Zones (2026)

Stamford's Zoning Regulations treat Adult-Use Cannabis Retailers, defined to include Hybrid Retail Facilities selling both medical and adult-use product, as a Special Permit use limited to certain commercial and manufacturing districts listed in Appendix A, Table I. Beyond ordinary Special Permit review, retailers face six additional standards. The city allows no more than one retailer for every 30,000 residents citywide. Each retailer must carry a current license from the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection and prove it when applying for a Building Permit. The buffer keeps retailers at least 3,000 feet from any other Dispensary, at least 1,000 feet from any public or non-public school or from a community center that regularly serves people under 21, and at least 500 feet from city parks or beaches.

A retailer also cannot sit on a lot that directly abuts, or sits directly across the street from, any of eleven listed residential districts, including RA-3, RA-2, RA-1, R-20, R-10, R-7½, R-6, R-5, RM-1, R-MF, R-H or R-HD, though retailers approved by the Zoning Board before August 12, 2024 keep their conforming status at those locations. Signage must follow whichever is more restrictive: the state's cannabis signage rules or Stamford's Section 11 sign standards for that district, and parking follows the Retail Store standard in Section 12.

The buffer standards were adopted under application 223-17MOD, effective July 25, 2023, with the residential-adjacency and grandfathering language added under application 224-14, effective August 12, 2024.