Cannabis Business Licensing and Regulations

At the April 6, 2022, regular meeting, City Council adopted Ordinance No. 5064 (PDF) related to including certain cannabis use licenses and regulations in the Grand Junction Municipal Code (GJMC), and Ordinance No. 5065 (PDF), which articulates the uses of the special sales and use tax and excise tax of 6 percent from the City’s regular sales tax collection of 3.25 percent. The total number of stores allowed in city limits will be capped at a maximum of ten (10).

On May 4, 2022, City Council adopted Ordinance No. 5070 (PDF) related to cannabis business licensing land use regulations including use standards, buffering, and signage requirements.

To operate legally, cannabis businesses must follow both City and State rules and regulations.

Applicant Information

The City of Grand Junction has begun accepting applications for retail and co-located medical and retail cannabis stores for ten sites. The application period began on 8:00 a.m. MST, Monday, May 9, 2022, Complete applications must be submitted to the City Clerk’s Office by 5:00 p.m. MST, Wednesday, June 8, 2022. It is recommended that an application submittal meeting be scheduled with the City Clerk to review an application for completeness. Only one application per site (unless the site will be used for an allowed co-located store) will be accepted. The application review period may take up to 90-days. After review, the applications will be forwarded to the Cannabis Licensing Authority to determine compliance and admittance into the random selection process. The ten selected applications will then proceed to the Colorado Department of Revenue Marijuana Licensing Division (MED) for State licensure.

Questions related to applications, scheduling application review, and licensing should be directed to the City Clerk's Office at cityclerk@gjcity.org or 970-244-1509.

Application Forms

• Form 1: Workflow Narrative (PDF)
• Form 2: Application Checklist (PDF)
• Form 3: Oath of Applicant (PDF)
• Form 4: Property Authorization for Cannabis Business (PDF)
• Form 5: Proposed Operating Plan (PDF)
• Form 6: Official Zoning Verification (PDF)
• Form 7: Floor Plan & Security Diagram (PDF)
• Form 8: Addendum Authorization Supplementals (PDF)
• Form 9: Oath of No Overlap (PDF)

Required State Forms

• Regulated Marijuana Business License Application (PDF)
• Marijuana Finding of Suitability Application – Natural Person (PDF)
• Marijuana Finding of Suitability Application – Owner Entity (PDF)

Cannabis Store Locations: Official Zoning Verifications

As part of a complete application, an Official Zoning Verification (Form 6) must be submitted. Zoning verification requests must be made on the form provided on Form 6 (above) and must be accompanied by an application fee of $100. Completed forms can be submitted to comdev@gjcity.org. Once a completed form is received an invoice and invoice number will be generated and emailed to the applicant. Online payments will be available once a verification request has been submitted and an invoice generated. Payment may also be made by check at 250 N 5th Street, Grand Junction, CO 81501. Official Zoning Verifications will include a disclaimer that they may become null and void should Ordinance No. 5070 (PDF) not become effective. 

• Form 6: Official Zoning Verification (PDF)

The proposed ordinance contemplates the following zone districts where a cannabis store would be an allowed use:  

• B-1 (Neighborhood Business)
• B-2 (Downtown Business)
• C-1 (Light Commercial)
• C-2 (General Commercial)
• M-U (Mixed Use)
• BP (Business Park Mixed Use)
• MX (Mixed Use Form Districts)

Within the M-U and MX zone districts, drive-through service would not be allowed. The location of these zone districts can be viewed on the City’s interactive Development Map.

The proposed ordinance for zoning and buffering requires 1,000-feet of separation from public/private elementary, middle, junior high, or high school, as well as from Colorado Mesa University and Western Colorado Community College. It also requires 500-feet of separation from any facility for prevention, treatment, or recovery from substance use and mental health concerns. These distances will be measured as a person would walk safely and properly from the property of the school/facility to the building of the proposed cannabis business. A map of these facilities and a list of associated addresses are below. 

• Buffering Map (PDF)
• Buffering Address List (PDF)