Tonawanda, NY Cannabis Regulations: Dispensary Zoning (2026)

Chapter 59 of the Code of the Town of Tonawanda records the Town Board's 2021 decision under New York State Cannabis Law: Local Law No. 5-2021 opts the Town out of allowing on-site cannabis consumption sites, exclusive of the Village of Kenmore, which keeps its own code. That opt-out reaches consumption lounges only. Retail dispensaries and microbusinesses are a different question, and § 215-24.14.A of the Zoning Law answers it by permitting them, subject to Planning Board review rather than a ban. Before a dispensary or microbusiness opens, an applicant must obtain approval of a site plan addressing the high pedestrian and vehicular traffic these uses draw, including a queuing plan for customers and vehicles and any temporary or overflow parking.

The applicant must also hand the Town a copy of the state license approved by the Office of Cannabis Management along with materials on safety and security at the site. The same section, § 215-24.14.B, separately regulates cannabis distribution, delivery, processing and cultivation uses, which go through special use permit and site plan review rather than the dispensary track. Enforcement of the zoning chapter runs through the Code Enforcement Officer and Planning Board. Because dispensaries are treated as a zoning use rather than a licensing matter, an operator who skips site plan review, or opens before the state license copy is on file with the Town, is in violation of Chapter 215 the same as any other unpermitted land use, exposing the property to the chapter's general penalty and to remedies including an order to cease operation.