Section 24.03 Requirements
The following minimum requirements shall apply to all “medical marijuana dispensary” and “medical marijuana cultivation location” uses located in the zoning district where such uses are permitted:
A. In addition to any other application requirements, an applicant for any medical marijuana dispensary or medical marijuana cultivation location shall provide the following:
1. A notarized authorization, executed by the property owner, acknowledging and consenting to the proposed use of the property as a medical marijuana dispensary or a medical marijuana cultivation location.
2. The legal name of the medical marijuana dispensary or medical marijuana cultivation location.
3. If the application is for a medical marijuana cultivation location, the name and location of the medical marijuana dispensary with which it is associated or, in the case of designated caregivers or qualifying patients, the names of the qualifying patients for which the medical marijuana is being cultivated.
4. The name, address and birth date of each officer and board member of the nonprofit medical marijuana dispensary agent.
5. The name, address, birth date and valid registry identification card number of (a) each medical marijuana dispensary agent if the application is related to a medical marijuana dispensary or a related medical marijuana cultivation location and (b) each designated caregiver and qualifying patient if the application is related to a medical marijuana cultivation location associated with such qualifying patient and designated caregiver.
6. A copy of the operating procedures adopted in compliance with ARIZ. REV. STAT. § 36-2804(B)(1)(c).
7. A notarized certification that none of the medical marijuana dispensary officers or board members has been convicted of any of the following offenses:
a. A violent crime, as defined in ARIZ. REV. STAT. § 13-901.03(B), that was classified as a felony in the jurisdiction where the person was convicted.
b. A violation of state or federal controlled substance law that was classified as a felony in the jurisdiction where the person was convicted except an offense for which the sentence, including any term of probation, incarceration or supervised release, was completed ten or more years earlier or an offense involving conduct that would be immune from arrest, prosecution or penalty under ARIZ. REV. STAT. § 36-2811 except that the conduct occurred before the effective date of that statute or was prosecuted by an authority other than the State of Arizona.
8. A notarized certification that none of the medical marijuana dispensary officers or board members has served as an officer or board member for a medical marijuana dispensary that has had its registration certificate revoked.
9. A floor plan showing the location, dimensions and type of security measures demonstrating that the medial marijuana dispensary or medical marijuana cultivation location will be secured, enclosed and locked as required by law.
10. A scale drawing depicting the property lines and the separations from the nearest property boundary of the parcel containing the medical marijuana dispensary or medical marijuana cultivation location to the property boundary of the parcel containing any existing uses listed in subsection 24.02(B) above. If any of the uses are located within 50 feet of the minimum separation, the drawing, showing actual surveyed separations, shall be prepared by a registered land surveyor.
B. A medical marijuana dispensary shall have operating hours not earlier than 7:00 a.m. and not later than 9:00 p.m., and the dispensary shall include with each sale, if provided by the Fountain Hills Protect Our Youth Coalition, or successor organization, mutually acceptable educational material pertaining to the safe storage of marijuana products and protecting youth.
C. A medical marijuana dispensary or medical marijuana cultivation location shall:
1. Be located in a permanent building and may not be located in a trailer, cargo container, mobile or modular unit, mobile home, recreational vehicle or other mobile vehicle.
2. Not have drive-through service.
3. Not emit dust, fumes, vapors or odors into the environment.
4. Not provide offsite delivery of medical marijuana.
5. Prohibit consumption of marijuana on the premises.
6. Not have outdoor seating areas, but shall have adequate indoor seating to prevent outside loitering.
7. Display a current Town of Fountain Hills business license and a State of Arizona tax identification number.
8. Install lighting to illuminate the exterior and interior of the building and all entrances and exits to the facility. Exterior lighting shall be five foot candles, measured at ground level, and shall remain on during all hours between sunset and sunrise each day. Twenty-four (24) hours each day, the medical marijuana dispensary or medical marijuana cultivation location shall illuminate the entire interior of the building, with particular emphasis on the locations of any counter, safe, storage area and any location where people are prone to congregate. The lighting must be of sufficient brightness to ensure that the interior is readily visible from the exterior of the building from a distance of one hundred (100) feet.
9. Provide security guards at the main entrances and exits during all hours of operation. For the purposes of this Chapter, “security guard” shall mean licensed and duly bonded security personnel registered pursuant to ARIZ. REV. STAT. § 32-2601 et seq. Prior to opening for business, the medical marijuana dispensary or medical marijuana cultivation location shall provide all property owners within a 500 foot radius of the medical marijuana dispensary or medical marijuana cultivation location with written notification via first class U.S. Mail of the security company responsible for providing its security services.
10. If determined necessary by the Town Manager at any time, medical marijuana dispensaries or medical marijuana cultivation locations shall provide a neighborhood security guard patrol for a five hundred foot radius surrounding the medical marijuana dispensary during all or specified hours of operation.
11. Have an exterior appearance compatible with commercial structures already constructed or under construction within the immediate neighborhood to insure against blight, deterioration, or substantial diminishment or impairment of property values in the vicinity.
12. Allow unrestricted access by Town code enforcement officers, Maricopa County Sheriff’s Department Deputies or other agents or employees of the Town requesting admission for the purpose of determining compliance with these standards.
13. Not display signs, or any other advertising matter used in connection with the medical marijuana dispensary or medical marijuana cultivation of any offensive nature and such signs shall in no way be contrary to the Town code, or obstruct the view of the interior of the premises viewed from the outside.
14. Comply with all other applicable property development and design standards of the Town of Fountain Hills.
D. To ensure that the operations of medical marijuana dispensaries are in compliance with Arizona law and to mitigate the adverse secondary effects from operations of dispensaries, medical marijuana dispensaries shall operate in compliance with the following standards:
1. No doctor shall issue a written certification on-site for medical marijuana.
2. There shall be no on-site sales of alcohol, tobacco or food, and no on-site consumption of food, alcohol, tobacco or medical marijuana.
3. Medical marijuana dispensaries shall only dispense medical marijuana to qualified patients and their designated caregivers as defined in ARIZ. REV. STAT. § 36-2801 et seq.
4. Medical marijuana dispensaries shall notify patrons of the following verbally and through posting of a sign in a conspicuous location at the medical marijuana dispensary:
a. Use of medical marijuana shall be limited to the patient identified on the doctor’s written certification. Secondary sale, barter or distribution of medical marijuana is a crime and can lead to arrest.
b. Patrons must immediately leave the site and not consume medical marijuana until at home or in an equivalent private location. Medical marijuana dispensary staff shall monitor the site and vicinity to ensure compliance.
5. Medical marijuana dispensaries shall not provide marijuana to any individual in an amount not consistent with personal medical use or in violation of state law and regulations related to medical marijuana use.
6. Medical marijuana dispensaries shall not store more than two hundred dollars ($200.00) in cash overnight on the premises.
7. Any qualified patient under eighteen (18) years of age shall be accompanied by a parent or legal guardian. Except for such parent or legal guardian, no persons other that qualified patients and designated caregivers shall be permitted within a medical marijuana dispensary premises.
8. Medical marijuana dispensaries shall provide law enforcement and all interested neighbors with the name and phone number of an on-site community relations staff person to notify if there are operational problems with the establishment. (24-03, Amended, 03/19/2024)