Georgina in state of waiting to exhale on retail pot shops

Residents encouraged to fill out survey

Yorkregion.com
January 8, 2019
Heidi Riedner

Elected officials are waiting for more public feedback before exhaling on a decision to opt in or out of retail pot shops before the province’s looming Jan. 22 deadline.

The town launched a short survey Dec. 20 available until Jan. 10 online at georgina.ca/cannabis and at the town’s three public library branches to, hopefully, garner as much public input before mayor and council make a decision based on the results tabled in a staff report scheduled for Jan. 16.

The report will also include a possible bylaw to regulate consumption of marijuana at all town-owned properties, as well as a one-year interim control bylaw to deal with the matter of potential cannabis production facilities.

In a letter tabled at the Dec. 12 meeting of council that included an extensive pot primer on the main issues of retail stores, consumption and production under consideration, resident Ron McCracken urged elected officials to follow the lead of municipalities such as King, Richmond Hill and Markham that have already opted out to allow Georgina more time to evaluate potential impacts to the community.

McCracken said opting out will address youth and safety matters, “which are, and should be, major concerns,” while posing “minimal, if any hardship” to adults who are able to purchase cannabis via other outlets.

“Georgina has more than its fair share of fragile youth, often in fragile home situations,” he added. “Anything council can do to avoid adding to circumstances facing those youth and their families is prudent. Markham and Richmond Hill enjoy far more stable socio-economic conditions than does Georgina. Their action in dismissing cannabis sales out of hand almost as soon as they were approved offers sound guidance to us.”

Only 25 retail stores will open in the province beginning April 1 under a phased approach due to supply shortages.

Licences for those stores -- which must be 150 metres from schools and in standalone locations -- will be handed out under the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) using a lottery system, with a limited number of licenses available in designated regions across the province.

Five of those licences will be issued to cannabis retail stores in the Toronto region with an additional six licences given to locations in the GTA, including Peel, Halton, York and Durham regions.

According to the AGCO, if a municipality chooses to opt out, it will be able to opt back in at any time, however, once a municipality opts in, it will no longer be able to opt out.

Access to an additional $15 million in pooled funding to municipalities to help with issues such as enforcement and public health inquiries, as well as future revenues, is also contingent on the Jan. 22 timing of a municipality’s choice to opt in.

Regardless of council's decision to opt-in or opt-out, the consumption of cannabis will still occur within the community, acting deputy CAO Ryan Cronsberry said.

While it is prohibited anywhere that smoking tobacco is not allowed by provincial law -- including enclosed public places, workplaces and near playgrounds, schools or daycares -- staff may recommend a new bylaw in the Jan. 16 report to prohibit cannabis use further than the requirements of the Smoke Free Ontario Act to include town facilities such as parks and recreation fields similar to the town's smoking bylaw.

Ward 4 Coun. Frank Sebo favours including cannabis in the town’s smoking bylaw "at the very least."

"If they are going to smoke it on a town property, at least they will have to go to a designated area," he said, but added there may be more of an issue if the town tries to restrict it entirely.

"Where does that leave the person who uses it medicinally because I believe you can smoke medical marijuana anywhere you can smoke tobacco."

Enforcement of whatever bylaw is in place may boil down more to public perception rather than convictions, Cronsberry advised councillors, adding it will come down to not only available resources, but also "how much of a response we want and can deliver."

According to the town’s municipal enforcement division, there have been no complaints lodged to date regarding cannabis use and those associated with tobacco are “infrequent.”

As for possible production sites, an interim control bylaw prohibiting the production of cannabis in rural zones for one year to allow further study and the development of an appropriate zoning approach will be up for council consideration Jan. 16.

“This option would give us the ability to further look into this with public feedback (while ensuring) these facilities do not pop up in the interim in places where they may cause issues for the existing community,” senior policy planner, Tolek Makarewicz, said, especially in light of the fact the town’s planning department has already received a number of inquiries regarding where facilities possessing Health Canada licences would be allowed to set up shop.

Main concerns raised to date regarding outdoor cultivation facilities in other areas include noxious odours and lighting, Makarewicz said, adding water supply requirements and using agricultural land for what may be better classified as an industrial use have also been raised.

Sebo acknowledged the odour issue was raised at earlier round-table discussions with Attorney General and York-Simcoe MPP Caroline Mulroney, but added there would be an obvious "adjustment" period.

As for the town opting out of allowing retail stores, Sebo has long said the town would just be sending people either to another municipality to purchase it legally or to illegal dealers if Georgina doesn’t allow bricks and mortar stores.

"It defeats the purpose completely" of legalization.