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Ontario has announced it is looking for places to set up marijuana stores run by the LCBO across the province.
The LCBO will work closely with municipal governments and local communities to decide the location of the stores, according to a release from the Finance Department.
The province plans to set up 40 stores when the federal government legalizes recreational marijuana, expected in July 2018. There will be 80 stand-alone stores by July 2019 and 150 stores by 2020. The LCBO will also be in charge of selling pot online.
Municipal governments were sent letters with some guidelines on how the marijuana stores will be established.
The province wants to make sure stores are distributed across the province. LCBO guidelines will also ensure “youth are protected and the illegal market is addressed,” said the release. Stores won’t be located near schools, for example.
The public will be given a chance to comment on proposed store locations. Once the LCBO had identified a site, a notice will be posted online and at the location. There will be a chance for people to “ask questions and provide feedback” on the proposed location, the release said.
Municipalities will be “essential partners,” it said. “As we move forward with retail implementation, officials from the Ministry of Finance and the LCBO will meet with municipalities that have been identified for potential sites to discuss concerns and next steps in this initiative.”
The province has said a key goal is to reduce the number of illegal dispensaries. Most of them are in Toronto, Ottawa and Hamilton.
When the province announced its approach to marijuana sales, officials said store locations may be chosen to compete with the illegal shops.
Ontario Attorney General Yasir Naqvi has warned that illegal shops will be closed. That’s proven to be a challenge since they began popping up in the winter of 2016, first in Toronto, then spreading to Ottawa and smaller Ontario cities.
Police in Toronto and Ottawa have staged multiple raids, charging hundreds of clerks, managers and shop owners with drug trafficking. Some stores have re-opened, though, and new ones pop up. There are about 20 dispensaries in Ottawa.
In Toronto, municipal officials have also targeted the shops, charging them with bylaw infractions.
Cannabis industry experts expect that 40 LCBO-run marijuana stores across the province won’t be enough to meet demand, and the black market will continue to flourish for some time as more stores are added.
There is also a concern about a shortage of cannabis across Canada when legalization arrives in July 2018. Federally-licensed growers are ramping up marijuana production, and new growing licences are being issued, but many analysts predict there still won’t be enough pot, at least initially.
When recreational pot is legalized, the federal government will regulate production and determine what products can be sold, while the provinces are in charge of distribution and sales. The minimum age for buying marijuana will be 18, although provinces can set it higher. Ontario plans to make the legal purchase age 19, which is also the legal drinking age.
The federal government has said dried weed and cannabis oil will be sold first, with edible cannabis products to be regulated later. The parliamentary committee studying the cannabis law passed amendments that would make edible products available within a year of legalization, and the federal Health Minister has suggested the same timeline.
jmiller@postmedia.com
twitter.com/JacquieAMiller
查看原文...
The LCBO will work closely with municipal governments and local communities to decide the location of the stores, according to a release from the Finance Department.
The province plans to set up 40 stores when the federal government legalizes recreational marijuana, expected in July 2018. There will be 80 stand-alone stores by July 2019 and 150 stores by 2020. The LCBO will also be in charge of selling pot online.
Municipal governments were sent letters with some guidelines on how the marijuana stores will be established.
The province wants to make sure stores are distributed across the province. LCBO guidelines will also ensure “youth are protected and the illegal market is addressed,” said the release. Stores won’t be located near schools, for example.
The public will be given a chance to comment on proposed store locations. Once the LCBO had identified a site, a notice will be posted online and at the location. There will be a chance for people to “ask questions and provide feedback” on the proposed location, the release said.
Municipalities will be “essential partners,” it said. “As we move forward with retail implementation, officials from the Ministry of Finance and the LCBO will meet with municipalities that have been identified for potential sites to discuss concerns and next steps in this initiative.”
The province has said a key goal is to reduce the number of illegal dispensaries. Most of them are in Toronto, Ottawa and Hamilton.
When the province announced its approach to marijuana sales, officials said store locations may be chosen to compete with the illegal shops.
Ontario Attorney General Yasir Naqvi has warned that illegal shops will be closed. That’s proven to be a challenge since they began popping up in the winter of 2016, first in Toronto, then spreading to Ottawa and smaller Ontario cities.
Police in Toronto and Ottawa have staged multiple raids, charging hundreds of clerks, managers and shop owners with drug trafficking. Some stores have re-opened, though, and new ones pop up. There are about 20 dispensaries in Ottawa.
In Toronto, municipal officials have also targeted the shops, charging them with bylaw infractions.
Cannabis industry experts expect that 40 LCBO-run marijuana stores across the province won’t be enough to meet demand, and the black market will continue to flourish for some time as more stores are added.
There is also a concern about a shortage of cannabis across Canada when legalization arrives in July 2018. Federally-licensed growers are ramping up marijuana production, and new growing licences are being issued, but many analysts predict there still won’t be enough pot, at least initially.
When recreational pot is legalized, the federal government will regulate production and determine what products can be sold, while the provinces are in charge of distribution and sales. The minimum age for buying marijuana will be 18, although provinces can set it higher. Ontario plans to make the legal purchase age 19, which is also the legal drinking age.
The federal government has said dried weed and cannabis oil will be sold first, with edible cannabis products to be regulated later. The parliamentary committee studying the cannabis law passed amendments that would make edible products available within a year of legalization, and the federal Health Minister has suggested the same timeline.
jmiller@postmedia.com
twitter.com/JacquieAMiller
查看原文...
