Maple Ridge council had a choice of three options in the way it deals with the legalization of recreational marijuana, once the product becomes legal across Canada on Oct. 17.
The city could: ban retail pot stores completely from within its borders; allow a limited number of shops to open, subject to certain restrictions; or throw open the doors completely and let the invisible hand of the market hold sway.
Council was to decide on whether to direct staff to pursue one of those options at its Tuesday meeting.
City staff, though, recommended the middle-of-the-road approach, similar to that followed for liquour stores, in which a limited number of shops are allowed in commercial zones.
Coun. Gordy Robson favoured that option and compared recreational pot shops to liquor stores.
“We don’t need 50 of them. It will allow us to move ahead,” Robson said.
Once legalization occurs, opening a recreational pot store in any B.C. city requires an applicant to first inform the Liquor and Cannabis Regulation Branch. That agency then informs the city. The city then holds a public consultation process, followed by municipal approval, or rejection, of the application.
The province recently announced that it’s accepting applications for retail outlets.
One provincial condition is that every pot store be a free-standing structure and not part of another retail operation.
Earlier this year, Maple Ridge banned all retail recreational pot stores, as a preemptive measure, to prevent a proliferation of stores in the interval before legalization takes place.
A staff report says the city should regulate pot the same way it does booze, allowing stores to open within the city’s three types of commercial zones. It also suggests that pot stores be required to be located at least one kilometre from each other and be at least 200 metres from schools.
Given such conditions, space could be found for four or five pot stores in Maple Ridge.
Coun. Craig Speirs also favours the second option, with possible changes to allow more pot shops in the downtown core because of the greater population density.
“It’s important we have enough,” subject to limits to ensure there isn’t an oversupply.
He said that soon medicinal and recreational pot will be sold beside each other within the same stores.
But Speirs, who’s running for mayor in the Oct. 20 civic election, said Tuesday that it’s possible that a majority on Maple Ridge council could opt to ban retail pot stores completely, as have Langley city and township.
A staff report notes that Burnaby, New Westminster and White Rock are allowing limited numbers of rec pot shops while Vancouver is requiring minimal limits for retail pot stores.
Mayoralty candidate Mike Morden said the city should be cautious, but also favoured the second option, allowing limited number of shops in the city. Under the provincial regulations, cities have the final say on whether a store opens anyways.
But he doesn’t favour an outright prohibition, as some cities are doing.
“We don’t ban the sale of alcohol, do we? We have no place to be banning marijuana as well. It’s going to be legal in this country. To me it’s a lot about safe supply, it’s about what we do with the revenues and it’s about the fact we need to be open to business in our community.”
Morden pointed out it’s not certain yet about the revenue split with the province or how the distribution systems work.
Council is also to decide on whether to change bylaws to allow it to regulate commercial production of marijuana within the Agricultural Land Reserve.
The Always Growing Green Society (TAGGS), on 224th Street, said earlier that doesn’t intend on applying for a recreational licence, and will continue operating as a medicinal marijuana dispensary.
Ernie Daykin, also running for mayor, said previously that he has concerns about recreational marijuana.
Pitt Meadows currently opposes recreational marijuana stores until it knows what the share of cities will be.