An interior view of Trece restaurants bar area and the future site of a cannabis consumption lounge is shown inside Planet 13 Las Vegas dispensary Monday, July 25, 2022.
Tuesday, Dec. 20, 2022 | 12:44 p.m.
Clark County Commissioners voted 6-1 today for an ordinance allowing marijuana lounges.
Commissioner Marilyn Kirkpatrick, who has previously noted complaints about the smell of marijuana on the Strip, cast the lone dissenting vote.
The vote comes nearly three weeks after the state Cannabis Compliance Board, which regulates the marijuana industry in Nevada, announced it had issued 40 prospective lounge licenses.
Regulators say the first lounges are likely to open next year, possibly in the summer.
Those with provisional licenses still must submit safety plans, pass a final safety inspection and get final approval from the board before they open.
Tiana Bohner, a spokeswoman for the board, said prospective consumption lounge licensees will have 120 days from Nov. 30 — the day the licenses were awarded — to submit their plans, among other requirements, for review.
The plans must outline protocols to deter customers from driving under the influence and prevent the distribution of unlicensed products in lounges.
In 2016, voters in Nevada approved Question 2, which paved the way for legal recreational marijuana. But the law only allowed for marijuana use at private residences.
The question of where tourists should be able to consume cannabis has plagued the burgeoning industry.
Under the Clark County ordinance, lounges cannot sell cannabis products two hours before closing and must allow a 24-hour grace period before towing cars parked in their lots.
Layke Martin, executive director of the Nevada Cannabis Association, said those provisions could cause trouble for lounges.
They “single out cannabis lounges for additional restrictions while there are no similar restrictions for bars or restaurants that serve alcohol,” Martin said.
Martin said the last-call rule — a way to help prevent impaired driving — will “require businesses to stop serving products at the busiest time.” She wanted the commission to create a 30-minute last call instead.
The no-tow rule, meanwhile, will make cars marked with no-tow stickers targets for thieves, she said.
It will also make it more difficult to find locations for the lounges because some property owners might not want to deal with cars parked for prolonged periods.
