Two Nassau County villages announced hearings on whether to allow the first recreational marijuana dispensaries to open in the county.

The Village of Lake Success and the Village of Hempstead, the largest in the nation, will hold hearings to amend zoning codes to consider allowing dispensaries to sell adult-use cannabis, according to public notices.

While the towns of North Hempstead, Hempstead and Oyster Bay all opted out of state-regulated marijuana sales, Lake Success opted in to the program in 2021 but has not yet approved any dispensaries.

Lake Success officials announced a July 13 hearing to discuss whether to permit cannabis retail dispensaries. The village code would allow one business to open in a strip mall of four possible locations on Northern Boulevard near Lakeside Drive, Mayor Adam Hoffman told Newsday.

The Village of Hempstead initially opted out of the program but will hold hearings June 18 and June 22 to amend the village code to allow retail cannabis dispensaries. Hempstead officials are not planning to allow any establishments that allow on-site cannabis use.

Several applicants had previously applied to open in Lake Success but could not find a suitable location, Hoffman said. The prospective location would be about one mile from another dispensary in Queens, but that location was not a factor, Hoffman said.

The village is looking to capitalize on tax revenue that could come with a dispensary opening. That includes 4% of sales tax from a dispensary and 3% of revenue, Hoffman said.

“It can do a lot for a small village,” Hoffman said. “We’re trying to control taxes. To me, if we can get some money to pave roads, buy police vehicles and improve sewer systems when it rains, it doesn’t seem like such a bad idea.”

Nassau County officials and leaders in the towns of Hempstead and North Hempstead did not respond to requests for comment Wednesday on the proposals.

Nassau County and town officials have largely opposed recreational cannabis dispensaries since legal sales began in 2023. Legal and illegal dispensaries have boomed in surrounding communities in Queens and elsewhere on Long Island.

Last year, state Sen. Jack Martins (R-Old Westbury) had proposed a bill to create buffer zones from Queens dispensaries operating near the Nassau County border, but the bill has not passed out of committee in the Democratic-controlled State Legislature.

Village officials have looked to sales in neighboring communities in Riverhead, Brookhaven, Southampton and the Town of Babylon in Suffolk County, where dispensaries have flourished, as they also have in East Farmingdale.

Lake Success’ proposal was approved by the Nassau County Planning Commision, Hoffman said. He said the village hopes to generate revenue to control rising health and pension costs.

“I know what stores do in Farmingdale and it’s substantial,” Hoffman said. “It’s a good size of money to allow the village to not have to bond.”

Long Island communities reaped $3.5 million in revenue derived from cannabis sales in 2024, including $2.6 million for the Town of Babylon, Newsday previously reported.

The state Office of Cannabis Management reported $1.5 billion in adult-use recreational sales last year, totaling $2.5 billion from the time the program began through November 2025.

The state said it has collected $340.6 million in state and local taxes between April 2023 to November 2025.