"There are a lot of churches, schools and early childhood centres within our CBD, so I'm hoping there won't be too many places available for them."
Grant Hall, general manager of The Star Trust, an organisation advocating for an individual's right to access low-risk legal highs sold legally, told Hawke's Bay Today the LAPP was essentially shutting down retailers and creating prohibition zones in Hastings.
"It [LAPP] is overstepping what the act [Psychoactive Substances Act] was intended for - local council has completely undermined the purpose of it," he said.
"The act was to create a strictly regulated retail market for safe psychoactive substances, not to discriminate against those that sold them."
He said the LAPP had created a "sad day" for law and justice in Hawke's Bay and essentially sent the region into the prohibition era of the 1920s and 1930s.
"We now have prohibition in Hastings for low-risk psychoactive substances when the public still has access to high-risk drugs [alcohol and tobacco].
"We have had reports that the Napier store has already had a big increase in revenue. People will either travel to Napier to buy or begin dealing in a black market."
He said the forced closure would encourage young people to deal in organised crime with the "safe alternative" now removed.
"The demand doesn't simply go away. Organised crime will pick up and supply those demands."
He said the Hastings District Council might be met by a legal challenge from The Star Trust and the two retailers affected.
Psychoactive Substances Regulatory Authority manager Donald Hannah said it was a condition of all interim psychoactive-substances retail licences to comply with the requirements of relevant LAPPs in their district or city.
"The Psychoactive Substances Regulatory Authority has suspended two interim retail licences in Hastings District, as it holds concerns that these licences may not comply with the requirements of the policy adopted by the Hastings District Council and now in effect."
He said the suspension occurred under section 22(1)(c) of the Psychoactive Substances Act.
"The authority is now investigating the requirements of the Hastings District Council LAPP in more depth, and the extent to which each affected retailer complies.
"Further regulatory action may include lifting the suspensions or taking action to cancel licences."
Napier City Council regulatory services manager Mike Webster, in charge of LAPP issues, said the Dalton St Adult Selections store was not in breach of the LAPP.
While Napier's LAPP had similar, but not identical, conditions about stores having to be certain distances from places of worship and education facilities, he said the Dalton St store met all the requirements.
Napier Mayor Bill Dalton said his council wanted to ensure the closures of the Hastings stores did not lead to problems in Napier.
"We'll just keep an eye on the situation and if we find that the actions of Hastings have chased some people across to Napier then we'll take whatever action we can," he said.
The ministry has suspended the licences for 21 days while it considers whether to cancel them.
