North Cook News

Arlington Heights leans in favor of permitting marijuana sales within its borders next year, when Illinois becomes the 11th state to legalize adult use of recreational cannabis, according to a tally published by the Daily Herald.

So far, 14 communities in the Chicago suburbs are leaning in favor of such sales, while 11 communities are leaning against and eight local governments are still studying the idea or remain uncertain about their plans, the Daily Herald reported.

Under a new law that takes effect Jan. 1, Illinois residents 21 or older can have up to 30 grams of cannabis in their possession, according to the advocacy group NORML. The law also gives local governments the power to allow or ban such sales.

The majority of the suburbs are looking at restricting marijuana sales to shops in certain areas or requiring the merchant to obtain a special use permit, according to the Daily Herald report.

Municipalities can also put in place a 3 percent tax on marijuana sales to generate revenues.

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Chicago Suburbs’ Views on Pot Sales

City / Village	Stance on Allowing Recreational Marijuana Sales
Antioch	No action taken
Arlington Heights	Leaning yes
Bartlett	Leaning yes
Batavia	Mayor vows veto
Bloomingdale	Leaning no
Buffalo Grove	Leaning yes
East Dundee	Yes
Elburn	Yes
Elgin	Leaning yes
Geneva	In discussions
Grayslake	No
Hanover Park	Undecided
Island Lake	Leaning yes
Lake Barrington	Leaning no
Lake in the Hills	Leaning yes
Lake Zurich	No
Libertyville	Leaning no
Lisle	Leaning no
Lombard	Leaning yes
Long Grove	No
Mundelein	In discussions
Naperville	No
North Aurora	Leaning yes
Park Ridge	Leaning no
Pingree Grove	Yes
Prospect Heights	Will appoint panel to study issue
Schaumburg	In committee discussions
South Elgin	Yes
St. Charles	Leaning yes
Sugar Grove	Leaning no
Vernon Hills	In committee discussions
Wauconda	Leaning yes
Wheaton	Leaning no

Source: Daily Herald