Cowlitz County, WA Cannabis Regulations: Dispensary Zoning (2026)
Key Facts
- Governing section
- CCC § 18.76.060, Location of Recreational Marijuana Facilities
- Retail Store, Urban/Industrial
- Administrative review (A)
- Retail Store, Rural
- Special use permit review (S)
- Retail Store, Agriculture/Remote
- Not allowed (N)
- Administering department
- Cowlitz County Building and Planning Department
- Applies to
- Unincorporated Cowlitz County only, CCC § 18.76.040
Summary
Cowlitz County limits recreational marijuana retail stores to certain zoning designations under CCC § 18.76.060. A retail store gets administrative review in Urban and Industrial districts, needs a special use permit review in Rural areas, and is not allowed at all on land zoned Agriculture or Remote in unincorporated Cowlitz County.
§ 18.76.060. Location of recreational marijuana facilities. A. This section identifies the location requirements and required review process for recreational marijuana land uses. ... Retail
Urban Rural Industrial Agriculture Remote Retail Store A S A N N
Matrix Key: A: Administrative review, see CCC § 18.76.080(B)(1) S: Special use review, see CCC § 18.76.080(B)(2) N: Not allowed
Full Breakdown
050. 060 sets out a location matrix that separately covers marijuana production, processing, and retail across five land use categories: Urban, Rural, Industrial, Agriculture, and Remote. 080(B)(2); and Agriculture and Remote are both marked 'N,' meaning a retail store is not allowed there at all. The chapter also separately regulates marijuana producers by tier and processors by type, each with its own allowance pattern by district, so a producer or processor site plan is not interchangeable with a retail location review. 040(C) further provides that no marijuana producer, processor, retailer, or medical marijuana facility operating before the chapter's enactment is deemed legally established or entitled to nonconforming status, so an existing unlicensed operation cannot claim a grandfathered right to its location. 080(B)(2).
Violations & Fines
A marijuana retail store sited or operated outside the review track its zoning designation requires is an unpermitted land use violation. Unincorporated Cowlitz County treats land use ordinance violations as civil infractions and public nuisances under CCC § 2.06.040, enforced through a notice of infraction and monetary penalty, and such violations can also be charged as a misdemeanor under the general penalty section, CCC § 1.01.090, carrying a fine of up to $250, up to 90 days in county jail, or both.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where can a marijuana retail store locate in unincorporated Cowlitz County?
Does this rule apply inside Longview or Kelso?
Who reviews a Cowlitz County marijuana retail application?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Cowlitz County
Compare Cowlitz County to another location·View the Washington cannabis regulations overview
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