Sanford, FL Cannabis Regulations: Dispensary Zoning (2026)

Schedule B of Sanford's Land Development Regulations lists "Pharmacy/Drug Stores and Medical Marijuana Dispensary" as permitted (P), subject to footnote (3), only in the GC-2 General Commercial district; it carries no entry in RMOI, RC-1, SC-3, RI-1, MI-2 or AG. Schedule E, Section 21.0, "Drug stores and medical marijuana dispensaries," sets the site standards: a dispensary may not be located within 1,500 feet of another pharmacy or medical marijuana dispensing facility, and may not be located within 500 feet of the real property of a public or private elementary, middle or secondary school or a day care facility, unless the Planning and Zoning Commission approves the location as a conditional use at a public hearing, ratified by the City Commission, after finding the use primarily serves the interests of the specific neighborhood.

Distance is measured in a straight line between the perimeter property line of the dispensary site and the closest property line of the school, regardless of whether the two uses sit inside or outside the city limits. Section 21.0(C) separately prohibits the preparation, wholesale storage, distribution, cultivation, growing or processing of any form of marijuana, and prohibits on-site consumption, at any pharmacy/drug store or dispensing facility in the city. A dispensary between 14,500 and 80,000 square feet may add a drive-through window; smaller dispensaries must conduct all sales inside the building, and any dispensary that does not meet the locational criteria can still apply for a major conditional use through the Planning and Zoning Commission and City Commission.