Village mulls stricter rules for licenses for tobacco and gaming

The Homer Glen Village Board is working to update its regulations regarding tobacco and gaming licenses as a six-month moratorium on issuing new licenses will soon expire.

Village officials are comparing their codes with surrounding communities. A moratorium on issuing new licenses expires March 13, and it could be lifted or continued, they said.

Homer Glen has 24 businesses with tobacco licenses, including 11 stores that primarily sell tobacco products.

“We have way too many tobacco shops in Homer Glen,” Mayor Christina Neitzke-Troike said.

The sentiment was echoed by other elected officials at Wednesday’s Village Board meeting.

“I think it needs to be a little bit more regulated than it is,” Trustee Rose Reynders said. “I think our ordinance needs to be a little more restrictive for us to be able to limit them.”

One option under consideration is to limit the location of tobacco shops so they are not located within 100 feet of any school, child care center, public park or building used for either education or recreation for children.

Another option would prevent a large number of shops in one area by making sure shops are at least 1,000 feet from another tobacco, alternative nicotine or vapor store.

Village officials also may require applicants to undergo a background check, which Neitzke-Troike and other elected officials support.

Trustee Jennifer Consolino said she liked the idea of higher license fees, citing both Frankfort and Romeoville that charge the highest fees of the municipalities surveyed.

Trustees are also considering whether to limit the number of tobacco licenses they will issue and whether applicants would need Village Board approval.