City Council
Pittsburgh plans to keep vape shops 1,000 feet away from schools.
A proposed ordinance would keep vape shops at least 1,000 feet from Pittsburgh schools. On April 15, council advanced the bill to a public hearing that hasn't been scheduled yet. Following city planners' advice, it also dropped daycares and religious institutions from the distance rules. A council aide said the original list would have effectively banned vape shops citywide.
Written by Amy Whipple
Pittsburgh is one step closer to keeping vape shops away from schools.
Council advanced legislation discussed at its April 15 committee meeting to hold a public hearing on legislation to regulate vape shops, including prohibiting shops from operating within 1,000 feet of a primary or secondary school.
The ordinance establishes standards for shops that primarily sell items such as vapes and CBD as well as Delta-8 and Delta-10 THC products. Regulations include the locations of shops, retail hours and points of purchase.
The legislation does not affect licensed medical marijuana dispensaries.
Council’s meeting came after it received recommendations from the Department of City Planning (DCP) regarding the ordinance as it was introduced in Sept. 2025.
Morgan Martin, a legislative aid for Council Member Bobby Wilson of Spring Hill, said the recommendations included striking daycares and religious institutions from the list of locations with distance requirements. According to Martin, the combination of all the initial locations would have effectively banned vape shops inside city limits.
DCP also informed council that it would be difficult to enforce a requirement to keep products in a locked case or behind a counter.
Council moved to adopt DCP’s recommendations. It will revisit the legislation after the public hearing, which has not yet been scheduled.
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- City Council · April 14, 2026
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