The Kankakee City License and Franchise Committee discussed whether to limit the number of dedicated smoke and vape shops in the city at its Feb. 6 meeting and asked city staff to draft an ordinance for committee review.

Committee members said they are tracking roughly six dedicated smoke shops within Kankakee and identified as many as 64 locations that sell tobacco products when convenience stores and gas stations are included. A committee member reported a total annual licensing fee revenue for those locations of about $9,700 and said individual tobacco licenses are roughly $125 per year.

Members raised concerns about products derived from hemp such as delta-8 and other synthetic cannabinoids, noting prior conversations at the ordinance committee and at the regional chiefs' meetings about youth access and reported health effects. The committee discussed state-level activity to ban or regulate those products, and several members said they did not want to wait for the state to act.

Suggestions during the discussion included placing a numerical cap on dedicated smoke shops (one suggestion was six total) and creating a separate convenience-store tobacco license for establishments where tobacco sales are incidental. One proposed approach discussed was a threshold rule allowing a convenience-store tobacco license only when tobacco accounts for no more than 25% of sales, preventing businesses from rebranding to evade a cap.

The committee directed city staff to draft ordinance language for the committee to review by the March license and franchise meeting; a committee member said they would ask in-house counsel Dawn to prepare a draft so it could advance to ordinance committee and, if approved, appear on a subsequent full Council agenda.

No formal ordinance vote occurred at the Feb. 6 meeting; the item remains in committee for drafting and further consideration.