District of North Vancouver staff are looking to clear the air this summer when they ask the community to weigh in on proposed pot regulations.
Council gave the go-ahead at a regular meeting on June 11 to consult the public on proposed rules for the sale and consumption of marijuana.
Key areas the district wants the public to weigh in on include hours of operation for cannabis shops and the suggested 200 or 300-metre buffer from schools.
Staff are recommending putting pot shops in zones that allow liquor stores but restricting their operating hours to include a 9 or 10 p.m. closing time. Provincial legislation states cannabis retail stores can operate between 9 a.m. and 11 p.m. unless further restrictions are put in place by local government.
Developments with potential pot shop locations that fall within the 300-metre buffer from schools include Lions Gate Village with 29 parcels, followed by Lynn Creek Town Centre with six parcels.
Saying she was not in favour of “blanket zoning,” for the cannabis shops, Coun. Lisa Muri asked if the district could look at applications on a case-by-case basis.
The district’s manager of community planning, Tom Lancaster, said that is possible.
Coun. Jim Hanson asked if the district could get into the business of selling pot and set up its own marijuana shops. Hanson said he recently learned at a Lower Mainland Local Government Association conference that some municipalities are seeking to become marijuana retailers themselves and would “derive the greatest economic benefit and use that to address other social concerns.”
District chief administrative officer David Stuart said they are willing to look at that idea if council chooses, but also offered a cautionary note.
“I will say, my experience is that public servants don’t make very good retailers,” said Stuart. “And then you’d have a situation where our police were having to enforce us with respect to these dispensaries – so we may end up with some kind of a conflict.”
North Vancouver RCMP Supt. Chris Kennedy was on hand at the meeting to answer questions from council regarding marijuana and policing.
Coun. Doug MacKay-Dunn asked Kennedy where the RCMP are at with roadside screening devices for marijuana.
“We’ve had no direction in that we’re told that it’s coming. It’s still up in the air,” said Kennedy.
Coun. Roger Bassam inquired if extra policing resources would be needed after marijuana is legalized. A revenue stream from retail sales trickling down to the municipality, said Bassam, would only be justifiable if there are additional costs associated with legalization.
“We have given it thought but right now we’re still waiting to see what impact these new (federal marijuana) regulations will have on us,” said Kennedy. “I suspect it will not have the same drastic impact that alcohol has had. But we will adjust and report back if we need further help.”
Stuart said it’s important for the municipality to lobby for their share of the pot from marijuana revenue because they know from experience that “it’s very expensive to enforce our land use in terms of the (pot shops) we’ve had to try to shut down.”
“So it’s not going to be a free ride,” said Stuart.
District planning staff are also proposing to allow the distribution of marijuana from government cannabis warehouses in all zones that permit warehousing and warehouse use.
Meanwhile, recommended enforcement rules could see retail operators facing a $200 fine for running a pot shop within 200 or 300 metres of a school and up to a $400 fine for selling edible cannabis or concentrates, or opening outside of the regulated hours.
When district staff start seeking feedback from the public through an online survey, they will ask about updating the smoking bylaw to see if they should treat cannabis the same way as tobacco.
Muri voiced concerns about the timing of the public engagement in the middle of summer. But with legalization, now set for Oct. 17, the district wants to hear from the community now, said the Dan Milburn, manager of planning, properties and permits.
The district will also meet with stakeholders this summer including the other two North Shore municipalities, Vancouver Coastal Health, RCMP, North Vancouver School District, community associations and marijuana business owners.
Proposed cannabis regulations would come back before council for introduction and first reading after the public consultation concludes in early September.
