Gibsons is going right to the deadline with a proposed bylaw amendment around cannabis retail, after councillors voted Oct. 2 to hold off on third reading.
The proposed bylaw would prohibit cannabis stores and consumption lounges in all zones, but open the door for people interested in selling cannabis to apply for temporary use permits (TUP) or a site-specific rezoning.
That approach would allow the Town to control where the shops open, and impose conditions.
Council is already working through a TUP application for The Healing Hut, a dispensary that’s been operating on Marine Drive for nearly two years and plans to pursue a provincial cannabis retail licence. A second application is still in the early stages.
At the public hearing on the bylaw Tuesday, the owners of S&M Medicinal Sweet Shoppe, Michelle and Doug Sikora, told councillors they will not apply for a TUP.
The Sikoras specialize in edible cannabis products, produced using marijuana strains grown locally. Michelle Sikora said getting a provincial licence would force them to sell only dried cannabis from the BC Liquor Distribution Branch (LDB) for non-medical use only.
Backed by a room full of employees and customers, Michelle Sikora said the couple plans to fight the restrictions the new federal and provincial laws will impose, and wants the Town to support them.
“We understand the position the federal and provincial governments have put on the municipality – we get that,” she said. “We’re willing to take a stand as two people, for the rest of our community. Are you willing to back us and help us with this? Because we are going to have a fight.”
When the bylaw came up for third reading at the evening council meeting, it was clear the public hearing made an impression on councillors.
Mayor Wayne Rowe said he was uncertain how to proceed, but suggested council could change the proposed bylaw to remove the words “licensed under provincial regulations” from the definition of cannabis store.
“If we took out the restriction that it had to be provincially licensed, then it would not necessarily be in violation of our bylaw and could apply for a temporary use permit. If what they’re selling is illegal then it’s for the RCMP and the province to address,” he said, while adding that his interpretation could be wrong.
Coun. Charlene SanJenko said she supports TUPs as a way to manage the soon to be legal cannabis retail sector, but she doesn’t want to create unnecessary barriers. “I think our local business people have many challenges in front of them that are far out of our jurisdiction … but I do want to make sure that before we push through a bylaw that we’re not adding to that,” she said.
Coun. Stafford Lumley took a similar position. “I certainly don’t want to hinder somebody’s business, I want to help somebody’s business, and from what I heard from [the Sikoras] their business is helping a lot of people and if they think moving ahead [with the bylaw] would hurt them, I’d like to get more information and be better informed before we make this decision.”
“It was supposed to be simple. The prime minister said it was simple,” Rowe quipped just before councillors took their vote on putting the bylaw on hold for two weeks to give staff time to draft a new report.
The delay means council will have to consider third reading and adoption, as well as pass a motion to waive a second public hearing, on Oct. 16, just a day before the new cannabis laws take effect.
