Smoke Shop Regulations Proposed

New Haven could soon see restrictions on new smoke shops — limiting where they can locate and prohibiting window displays full of smoking accessories.

A proposed ordinance amendment now before the Board of Alders would change the zoning code so as to limit the places where new smoke shops and tobacco-centered bars could open up. It would also require all tobacco sellers to obtain a soon-to-be-created municipal license, and it would limit new iterations of the bright, attention-grabbing displays of smoking paraphernalia that currently dominate many smoke shop windows.

Westville Alder and Majority Leader Richard Furlow, Downtown/East Rock Alder Eli Sabin, and Fair Haven Alder Frank Redente co-authored the proposed amendment, which is currently slated for review by the alders’ Legislation Committee as well as by the City Plan Commission and the South Central Regional Council of Governments.

Tobacco shops are currently classified as ​“specialty stores” within the city’s zoning code, alongside shops like bookstores, bike shops, and toy stores.

The ordinance amendment would change that by creating two new designations in the city’s zoning code: a ​“Smoke Shop” (a place that sells tobacco or vape products and paraphernalia) and a ​“Smoking Place” (an establishment with on-site tobacco consumption such as a hookah or cigar lounge).

Under the amendment, new smoke shops and smoking establishments would have to be located at least 1,000 feet away from a school, place of worship or public park. They would also have to be at least 3,000 feet away from existing tobacco sellers. (There is some leeway for a store that has to relocate or that receives a waiver from the Board of Zoning Appeals.)

Tobacco retailers would also face regulations on new signage and displays.

They would not be able to cover more than half of their windows with posters or signs. They would not be allowed to display ​“lights that flash, shimmer, glitter, or lights that give the appearance of flashing, shimmering or glittering.” And they would have to ensure that all smoking products and paraphernalia be hidden from the public’s view.

According to City Plan Director Laura Brown, these display, lighting, and signage rules would apply to both existing and future tobacco businesses if passed. At the same time, if the ordinance amendment passes, smoke shops won’t have to take down currently-legal window displays, but they won’t be able to add signage or lighting that violates the new regulations.

The ordinance amendment also mentions that smoke shops and smoking places would have to obtain a ​”tobacco retailers license” — a yet-to-be-created municipal license — on top of any state licensing requirements.

The proposed ordinance arrives as other Connecticut suburbs have ramped up regulation on tobacco retailers; both Westport and Milford have gone so far as to ban new smoke shops altogether.

It also coincides with a proliferation of smoke shops in downtown New Haven — businesses that range from convenience stores that sell a large quantity of tobacco products to shops that focus exclusively on tobacco and smoking accessories. And that’s not to mention the arrival of recreational cannabis dispensaries alongside the statewide legalization and local regulation of adult-use pot.

The downtown stretch of Chapel Street in particular has seen numerous smoke shops open up in recent years, sometimes literally right next to each other. 

At Chapel Smoke Shop, a fluorescent establishment across the street from the New Haven Green, a steady stream of customers (and an occasional aimless wanderer) flowed in and out on Thursday afternoon. One person rolled a suitcase in slacks and a collared shirt; one clutched a Bible, wearing an all-black set of sweats. All were met with bright white lights illuminating shelves of pipes, hookahs, vapes, and brightly-colored products.

Joel Coronado has worked at the store for three months now. ​“I feel that it sucks,” he said upon learning of the proposed ordinance, ​“because if anybody wants to open up a business, it shouldn’t have to be a certain distance.”

“The schools, and the regulations like that, I understand that,” he added later. 

But a mandate that new smoke shops be at least 1,000 feet away from parks doesn’t make sense to him, as someone who works in a smoke shop directly across from the New Haven Green, where open substance usage is far from unusual. ​“There’s no playground there,” he said. ​“A smoke shop is the last thing they should be worried about with that park.”

Coronado also disagreed with the proposed regulations on window displays. The reason that smoke shops use bright, glittery lights is ​“to catch the attention of people,” he said. It shouldn’t be treated any differently from other forms of advertising, he argued: ​“What’s the difference from McDonald’s displaying their menu?”

Overall, Coronado said the proposal would harm the city’s economy. ​“The less money the businesses makes, the less money there is for the city,” he said.

Farooq Alwajih, the owner of Mist Tobacco & Convenience on Orange Street, offered a different take.

“To be honest, I agree with the city,” he said. ​“I personally hate smoke shops.”

Alwajih makes a distinction between stores like Mist, which functions as a convenience store, and stores that exclusively sell tobacco products. Mist sells fruity drinks and cereals, ice cream sandwiches and microwave meals, in addition to a wall of vape fluid and cigarettes. It does not, Alwajih stressed, sell paraphernalia like pipes or bongs.

According to Alwajih, selling food and drinks has always been his main priority: ​“I do food with a passion.” He recently opened up the tobacco-free Audubon Market around the corner from Mist, a grocery store that offers smoothies, waffles, and classic deli food alongside a variety of grocery items. 

Mist, he argued, is a convenience store that happens to sell plenty of tobacco — not a ​“smoke shop.”

The city’s zoning code, however, might soon disagree.