The Warren Board of Aldermen and Planning and Zoning Commission are considering the possible extension of hours for the Proper Cannabis store in Warrenton, although more work will need to be done before any such extension is approved.

The two boards met for a work session Tuesday, June 9, with representatives from Proper Cannabis to discuss the store’s request to have a 24-hour drive-thru at the dispensary.

Currently the store is open seven days a week from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.

Proper Cannabis Director of Security and Compliance David Bonenberger told the assembled board members that there are currently seven dispensaries that are open 24 hours, not three as he had stated in a prior meeting.

Bonenberger then discussed with the two boards the various regulations that apply to the dispensary. He said that state law requires that the dispensary have 24-hour surveillance of the property and that they keep archived footage for a minimum of 60 days. He said the company’s policy is to keep such footage for 90s days.

He also stated that the facility is inspected by the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services Division of Cannabis Regulation randomly on a quarterly basis. He said that since opening in Warrenton on April 21, 2020, there have been no compliance violations at the store.

Bonenberger said that while state law does not require security the company does provide security through the use of Campbell Security and Service Group. If they were permitted to go to 24-hours, Bonenberger said the company would extend its security to cover the additional hours they are open.

Following Bonenberger’s presentation, aldermen and commission members were allowed to ask questions regarding the store’s request to be open 24 hours.

Commission member John Cornell asked Bonenberger what the market was for being open 24 hours. Proper Cannabis Vice President of Retail Cardell Robinson said that the market would be in part people traveling overnight from Kansas City to St. Louis. It would also include local people who work in or close to St. Louis coming home from working a later shift. In response to another question Robinson noted that the only way to utilize the drive-thru is via online orders that are then picked up at the business.

Commission member Scott Costello asked city staff which zoning districts a dispensary could be approved in. During the course of the meeting it was determined that they would be acceptable in any zone other than C-1. Costello noted that C-2 and C-3 zones in the city do have residential properties and noted concerns about allowing new dispensaries to come in that would be 24-hour dispensaries near residential areas.

Both Bonenberger and Robinson said they were only looking for the drive-thru to be open 24 hours. They said they have no interest in having the lobby open for the full 24 hours.

In order to achieve that they would probably need to hire three to four additional staff members with the goal of having two staff members present during the nighttime hours.

As the meeting proceeded, the major discussion point focused on Costello’s concerns about additional dispensaries coming into Warrenton that would also be seeking 24-hour operations.

Commission member Melissa Jepsen said that she felt it would be possible to set a condition that a business would need to be in operation for a period of time before allowing them to be open for 24 hours, a condition Proper Cannabis could easily meet having been in the community for six years.

As part of the ongoing discussion, Bonenberger noted that the state restricts where dispensaries can be located, saying that the law requires they not be within 1,000 feet of a church, daycare or school. Additionally Bonenberger noted that under current law the number of dispensaries are capped at 27 for each congressional district in Missouri and that all of the licenses have already been used up. This means that currently no additional dispensaries can even open anywhere in the district.

Costello then noted that there are no 24-hour liquor stores anywhere in Warrenton. He suggested perhaps looking at extended hours that would possibly mirror liquor stores, but going short of 24 hours of operation.

Eventually Mayor Eric Schleuter suggested sending out an email to aldermen and commission members to see where they all stand on the issue so that a proposed ordinance could be drafted for either 24 hour operation or something short of that. Ultimately any proposed rule change would need to come before the planning and zoning commission and board of aldermen for approval.