Fort Collins Smoke Shop Refuses to Close Despite County Order

According to The Coloradoan, the shop has been resisting the order since it began — so much so, in fact, that Larimer County took legal action against the store on Friday (April 3).

The county ordered the shop to close, promising to monitor the shop with law enforcement and remove anyone inside.

Despite this, One Love is still operating.

Jonah Ricke, the store's owner, said in an interview with The Coloradoan that he will continue running the shop "until this is not America."

Part of his reasoning for staying open is that One Love carries many items that are deemed essential, such as bottled water, paper towels, cleaning products, and food.

He also noted that no law enforcement officers have actually stopped by the store as of yet.

The Coloroadoan reports that Dan Repella, the Larimer County Environmental Health Specialist, visited the store on Friday after receiving six complaints about it being open.

Repella explained to Ricke that since the business is listed as a tobacconist in the county records, it is not essential.

Ricke responded that One Love should be listed as a convenience store, and later removed the two violations Repella had placed on the store's front door.

Ricke plans to keep the shop open, while practicing social distancing, cleaning regularly, and limiting customers to 15 minutes in the store.