A Summit County judge has voided Akron City Council’s permit for a marijuana dispensary in Merriman Valley, ruling that council’s approval was, in the court’s words, “illegal and arbitrary.” Judge Christine Croce of the Summit County Court of Common Pleas ruled on November 3 that the conditional-use permit for Firelands Scientific’s planned dispensary, The Landing, must be vacated, according to the Akron Beacon Journal, which reported the decision from the court’s written ruling.
The Landing was planned for a former CVS Pharmacy at 1140 W. Portage Trail, a vacant storefront in one of Akron’s most residential valleys. Firelands Scientific, an Ohio marijuana company, sought to open a dual-use dispensary there — and the plan drew opposition from neighbors from the start.
“Upon review of the whole record and due consideration of the arguments presented, the court finds the city’s decision to be illegal and arbitrary,” the court wrote in its decision, as quoted by the Akron Beacon Journal. “As such, the administrative appeal is granted, and the city’s decision to grant the conditional use permit is vacated.”
The lawsuit was brought by Crossings Development Limited Partnership, a neighboring developer, which argued the permit violated Akron’s own zoning rule prohibiting marijuana facilities within one mile of each other. The court agreed with that argument, noting that two marijuana cultivation sites sit within a mile of the old CVS, according to the Beacon Journal’s reporting of the decision.
Crossings had also argued the dispensary would fail the standard that a use be harmonious with the city’s comprehensive plan and the essential character of the neighborhood, and a rule against uses that worsen an area through excessive traffic, noise, smoke, fumes, glare or odors. On the comprehensive-plan question, the court said the city did not include its comprehensive plan or master plan in the record, so it could not conclude whether that argument had merit, the Beacon Journal reported.
On harmony with the neighborhood, the court pointed to largely negative testimony from residents. Many of the concerns came from residents of the Waters Edge Condominiums, which sit behind the building, who raised traffic worries; proximity to daycares and residential areas and the effect on property values were also raised, according to the Beacon Journal.
The court was pointed about how City Council handled that testimony. “The city responds by indicating that the conditional use process is not ‘a popularity contest’ and mostly dismisses residents concerns,” the court wrote, in a passage quoted by the Akron Beacon Journal. The decision also noted the city acknowledged traffic is an issue in the area and said it “may” attempt to secure funds in the future for a traffic study.
The ruling reverses a close and contentious vote. Council approved the permit on January 29 by a 7-5 margin at a special meeting, with Bruce Bolden, Linda Omobien, Johnnie Hannah, Eric Garrett and Phil Lombardo voting no and Donnie Kammer absent, according to the Beacon Journal’s reporting at the time and its account of the ruling.
The Merriman Valley site was Firelands Scientific’s second attempt to open in Akron. The company previously abandoned a planned Highland Square dispensary after significant pushback from neighbors there, then pivoted to the Merriman Valley storefront — where it met the same kind of organized opposition, the Beacon Journal has reported.
The contrast inside Akron’s marijuana map is sharp: another company’s revised dispensary plan in Fairlawn Heights won council approval in January and moved forward, while both of Firelands’ Akron attempts have now ended without a store. The one-mile separation rule the court enforced is the city’s own — written to keep marijuana facilities from clustering — and it proved decisive here.
What we know — and what we’re still waiting on: the ruling, the vote history and the court’s reasoning are confirmed from the written decision as reported by the Akron Beacon Journal, the only outlet reporting the November 3 ruling. A Firelands representative did not respond to a request for comment, the Beacon Journal reported, and it was not immediately clear whether City Council will appeal.
What happens next: unless council votes to appeal Judge Croce’s decision, the conditional-use permit stays vacated and The Landing cannot open at the Portage Trail site. An appeal would send the dispute to the Ninth District Court of Appeals; no such filing had been reported as of the Beacon Journal’s November 6 account.