Published 10:30 am Friday, January 23, 2026
By Mac Larsen
Unlike a few of its neighbors, Portland to the north and Oregon City to the east, West Linn isn’t dotted with neon green crosses advertising marijuana dispensaries.
Going back to 2014, when Oregonians approved Measure 91 to legalize recreational marijuana, West Linn residents chose to ban licensed marijuana dispensaries within city limits.
That could now change; during the West Linn City Council’s Tuesday, Jan. 20 meeting, councilors weighed the potential tax revenue from changing city policy.
“West Linn is still one of the few remaining Portland-metro cities with prohibitions on the sale of marijuana, along with Lake Oswego, Sherwood, Wilsonville and Canby. I’m sure you’ve noticed Oregon City, just across the bridge, has about seven dispensaries,” said assistant to the city manager Dylan Digby.
Cities that haven’t restricted marijuana dispensaries receive 10% of the state’s total sales, distributed every 3 months, based 75% on the city population and 25% on the licensure numbers in West Linn. City staff estimated that West Linn would receive around $40,000 per year from the state shared per capita revenue distribution.
City staff noted that West Linn has relatively few potential dispensary sites due to state law meant to keep those businesses far from schools and parks. Oregon City further restricted dispensary locations beyond state law so that they cannot be within 250 feet of parks, licensed child and daycare facilities and public transit centers.
State law is considered “the floor,” and local jurisdictions can impose further restrictions on where and when businesses may operate, according to city legal counsel.
Mayor Rory Bialostosky said he thought public sentiment about cannabis use and marijuana sales may have changed in the past 12 years. All counselors agreed that it would be best to engage the community through informal channels, such as a short online survey or a mailing to utility bill recipients.
Bialostosky also acknowledged the city’s budget challenges and noted that the lifting of the ban could benefit the city financially.
“(We should) make sure we’re giving an accurate picture of the fact that we could do time, place, manner restrictions,” said Mayor Bialostosky. “I think those are some important factors to make sure the community is educated about. And then the revenue picture that this would bring in, given that we’re going into a potential budget deficit,I mean, it’s not going to solve all of our budget problems, but every dollar helps. And we’ve made a commitment to look at everything.”
City councilors directed staff to begin informal survey efforts and gather information on the potential benefits to the city’s budget from marijuana revenue and on how those businesses would be controlled in West Linn.
