Ohio Cannabis Market Update, June 2026: SB 56 Reshapes Licensing
Ohio’s retail market is shifting this June. The Ohio cannabis SB 56 dispensary cap took effect in March, merging adult-use and medical regulation under a single division and capping statewide dispensaries at 400. Local opt-outs still block legal retail for 14% of the state’s population. Meanwhile, Klutch opened in Columbus through a license swap, Green Thumb pitched Brunswick Hills, and Circleville extended its moratorium another 90 days.
Top Headlines This Month
- 📊 137 active moratoriums cover 14% of Ohioans
- 🏛️ Circleville extends marijuana moratorium 90 days to August
- 🏛️ Green Thumb pitches Rise dispensary on Pearl Road
- 🏪 Klutch acquires Columbus license, opens June 12
📊 OHIO: 137 ACTIVE LOCAL MORATORIUMS COVER 14% OF STATE POPULATION AS OF MAY 2026
As of May 1, 2026, 137 Ohio jurisdictions have active moratoriums prohibiting adult-use cannabis businesses, covering approximately 14% of the state’s population. In total, 163 municipalities or townships have passed moratoriums since adult-use marijuana became legal in December 2023, though that figure represents just over 7% of Ohio’s 924 incorporated municipalities and 1,307 townships. Of 143 collected ordinances, 140 enacted full bans on all adult-use business types. Among those, 106 left the moratorium length undefined, while the remaining jurisdictions set defined durations. Under state law, if DCC issues a dispensary license in a jurisdiction without a moratorium, the locality has 120 days to enact a prohibition ordinance; the dispensary then has 60 days to cease operations or initiate a voter petition. Ohio’s Host Community Fund, which receives 36% of the recreational cannabis excise tax, distributes those funds only to municipalities and townships with active adult-use dispensaries, creating a financial incentive for localities to permit operations.
Ohio’s opt-out rate is still modest compared to Michigan, where 73% of municipalities opted out (1,300 of 1,773), and New York, where about 50% opted out (753 of 1,520). The 137 active bans still leave a meaningful share of the state’s population outside the legal retail market, and because 106 of those bans carry no defined end date, the timeline for expansion in those areas remains open-ended.
🏛️ CIRCLEVILLE: CITY EXTENDS MARIJUANA MORATORIUM 90 DAYS AS PURE OHIO WELLNESS PITCHES DISPENSARY
Circleville is extending its temporary ban on marijuana businesses by 90 days, pushing the expiration from May 6 to August 2026. At a Judicial Committee meeting on April 21, 2026, Pure Ohio Wellness, a vertically integrated cannabis company that has operated in Ohio since 2018, presented a dispensary proposal and described Circleville as an underserved market where residents currently travel to Chillicothe and London to make purchases. The company projected 8 to 12 jobs at $17 to $18 per hour in starting wages, and estimated the city would receive between $215,000 and $422,000 in annual tax revenue under Ohio’s 10% excise tax, with 36% of the state’s share returned to the host municipality. For context, neighboring Chillicothe received approximately $330,000 in tax revenue during the first 14 months of adult-use sales from August 2024 through November 2025. The Pickaway Addiction Action Coalition, represented by Administrator Susan Metzger, opposed the proposal, with Metzger testifying that THC cannabis is already present in four local school districts. The full City Council was scheduled to vote on the extension on May 5, 2026.
Circleville’s situation reflects a dynamic playing out across Ohio: localities extending moratoriums while simultaneously hearing market-entry proposals backed by concrete tax revenue figures. The 90-day extension set a hard deadline for the council to finalize local regulations before a decision becomes unavoidable.
🏛️ BRUNSWICK HILLS: GREEN THUMB INDUSTRIES PROPOSES RISE DISPENSARY AT 2175 PEARL ROAD
Green Thumb Industries (GTI) presented a proposal to Brunswick Hills Trustees on May 12 to open a Rise Dispensary at 2175 Pearl Road. GTI Senior Vice-President and General Manager Daniel Shaker said the company plans $1.5 million to $2 million in property improvements and projects 15 to 20 jobs starting at $16 per hour, with proposed hours of 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Friday and 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. GTI currently operates 114 Rise retail stores and manufacturing operations across 14 states according to its Q1 2026 SEC filings, with existing Ohio locations across the state. Shaker described Medina County as an underserved market and estimated annual tax revenue to the township of $260,000 to $420,000. The Pearl Road site is the only location available in Brunswick Hills due to local moratoriums and state regulations governing where cannabis facilities can be located. Before opening, the township must update its zoning code and obtain an Ohio Department of Transportation traffic study approval since Pearl Road is a state route. GTI estimated the full process will take six months to one year after all approvals are granted. All three trustees expressed support for continuing to explore the proposal.
The Brunswick Hills pitch involves a multi-state company targeting an Ohio market it describes as underserved while working through zoning and planning requirements. Separately, GTI is one of nine defendants in a lawsuit filed by Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost in February, which alleges that multi-state cannabis companies colluded to artificially inflate prices and cut out independent Ohio growers. Shaker did not address the lawsuit during the trustees meeting.
🏪 COLUMBUS: KLUTCH CANNABIS ACQUIRES DISPENSARY LICENSE FROM FARKAS FARMS, OPENS JUNE 12
The Ohio Division of Cannabis Control approved Klutch Cannabis’s acquisition of a Columbus dispensary license from Farkas Farms, with the store located at 5429 Bethel Sawmill Center. As part of the same transaction, Klutch is selling its Loudonville, Ohio dispensary to Farkas Farms. Klutch founder and CEO Adam Thomarios said Columbus has been one of the most requested locations from patients and customers over the past six years. The store carries Klutch’s full product lines, including Klutch Cannabis, Citizen by Klutch, and Habitat by Klutch, alongside partner brands Cookies, Josh D, and Kiva Confections, plus other Ohio cannabis companies. The grand opening was scheduled for Friday, June 12, at 9:00 AM, with doorbuster deals and exclusive product drops planned for the opening days.
The simultaneous license swap between Klutch and Farkas Farms illustrates how Ohio’s secondary license market is functioning under DCC oversight, with license holders exchanging locations to reposition their geographic footprints. For Klutch, entry into Columbus came after six years of customer demand for a presence in the state capital.
💼 Ohio Cannabis Deals
Border Location in Steubenville
- For groups with 10B licenses to place we have a site 40 mins from Pittsburg compliant for adult-use retail sales
- Check it out at retail.cann.dev/oh (enter your email to get in)
Northeast Ohio — Asking $4,000,000
- $350,000/month gross revenue
- $50,000–$60,000/month net profit
- Current lease: $8,240/month
- Real estate available separately for $850,000
North Central Ohio — Asking $2,100,000
- $1,000,000 annual gross revenue
- Absentee management
Eastern Ohio (PA Border Region) — Asking $3,250,000
- $3,000,000+ annual gross revenue
The Bottom Line
June 2026 shows Ohio’s cannabis retail market consolidating under the SB 56 dispensary cap while local fights over moratoriums continue in Circleville, Brunswick Hills, and 137 other jurisdictions. License transactions like the Klutch and Farkas Farms swap signal an active secondary market under the new Division of Cannabis Control.
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