Dispensary withdraws application from city

A sign posted on the doors of City Hall before Monday’s Planning and Zoning Commission meeting stated it bluntly: Trulieve dispensary withdrew its formal application to operate in Maricopa.

Planning and Zoning Manager Rick Williams later confirmed the information at the start of the meeting, in which he said the application is “no longer valid with the city.”

Williams later said the application was withdrawn on Friday, March 31, and the cannabis company gave no official reason.

To date, Trulieve was the only dispensary attempting to open in the city.

The revelation comes days after City Council approved revisions to its marijuana zoning codes, which included updating definitions of the types of marijuana facilities permitted and minimum distances from existing institutions. Following recommendations from Maricopa Unified School District and city leaders, the minimum distance a dispensary must be from a school was increased to 1,500 feet from 500.

Documents obtained from the city indicate Trulieve’s original proposed location would have placed the facility inside of 1,500 feet from Maricopa High School. It would have been beyond a 500-foot limit under old zoning laws.

If the dispensary opts to move to a different location, it must start over its formal application process to request approval for a conditional use permit.

“It would require another neighborhood meeting, property owner notification, site posting and Planning Commission approval,” Williams said.

Trulieve has not responded to multiple requests for comment.