Henrico broadens vape shop regulations to apply to other retail stores

The Henrico Board of Supervisors unanimously approved new restrictions on vape shops and other retail stores that sell similar substances at a meeting on Tuesday.

Under the regulations, any new stores that sell substances such as vapes, tobacco, cannabis, edibles, kratom, or other nicotine products as their “primary business” would only be allowed in certain zoning districts and must obtain a provisional use permit, which requires a public hearing, before opening.

These stores would also not be allowed to open in locations within 1,000 feet from a school or within 2,000 feet from religious institutions, childcare centers, public parks, or other vape shops.

The threshold that stores would need to meet to circumvent these requirements would also be changed; instead of having less than 15% of display spaces with smoking products, stores would need to have less than 5%.

These new measures add on to other regulations the board passed this past August and last summer, and are just one part of a multipronged effort by the county to address the growing number of vape shops, board members said.

What is most concerning to county officials is that many vape shops advertise and sell products to underage children, said board vice-chair Roscoe Cooper (Fairfield District).

“I think we all agree that this is a public health crisis,” he said. “We have young people that have gone to these stores and the I.D. literally said 17-years-old, and [the shops] knew that they were 17, but yet they still sold product, because again, they don’t care about the impacts on the individuals, the community.”

Henrico leaders have identified 85 vape shops throughout the county – an increase from the 74 that were documented this past August. 

Following a county task force that was assembled in August to crack down on illegal vape shops, Henrico Police has charged 30 shops with selling products to minors. The county has also issued more than 300 code violations and has prosecuted several shops that were operating without a business license.

The county believes that the task force has inspected every single vape shop existing in the district, said county attorney Andrew Newby.

The task force has also worked with Virginia Commonwealth University’s Department of Forensic Science to analyze products found in Henrico vape shops. The department has found levels of THC – the main active ingredient of cannabis – that exceed legal limits and has found other synthetic compounds.

County leaders will continue to monitor vape shops and will take whatever steps are necessary to prevent minors from becoming exposed to vaping and smoking products, said Cooper.

“[For] those who are young, those who are vulnerable, it’s our job to protect them and we will do it at all costs,” he said. “I think we’ve shown that, with basically putting more teeth into this ordinance and using every tool in the toolbox to eradicate the illegal sales.”

Liana Hardy is the Citizen’s government and education reporter. Support her work and articles like this one by making a contribution to the Citizen.