Pubdate: Tue, 25 Feb 2014
Source: Kelowna Capital News (CN BC)
Copyright: 2014, West Partners Publishing Ltd.
Contact:  http://www.kelownacapnews.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1294
Author: Alistair Waters

COUNCIL SAYS NO TO GROWING LICENSED POT ON FARMS

As expected, Kelowna city council has made its first move to restrict 
new federally licensed medical marijuana growing operations to industrial land.

Council voted to give initial acceptance to a recommendation from 
city staff Monday after being told three areas of industrial land - 
those zoned for general industrial (I-2 zone), heavy industrial (I-3 
zone) and central industrial (I-4 zone)-are more suitable for the 
type of operations Ottawa is now licensing than farmland would be.

City staff said they considered allowing the new operations in the 
I-1 zone but felt that could create too many conflicts as the I-1 
zones allows for light industrial that is often located too close to 
residential areas.

While the federal government has already started to shut down 
previously licensed home medical marijuana growing operations, it is 
not known exactly how it will proceed with the new commercial 
operations that will be allowed after April 1.

The federal changes started to take place last July and will be fully 
implemented as of April 1.

But while council agreed the new, larger commercial operations would 
be better suited to industrial areas-where the indoor and properly 
ventilated operations must meet stringent security measures-it is not 
happy with the lack of information Health Canada is providing to make 
sure that the smaller, home growing operations they are replacing 
will be shut down properly.

Council was told the RCMP and city bylaw officials are currently 
putting together a plan but Heath Canada has not told the city where 
all the licensed home operations are located.

"It looks like its up to our bylaw people and our RCMP to deal with 
this without any resources from Health Canada," said Coun. Colin 
Basran. "I have a concern with that."

Coun. Maxine DeHart was more blunt in here summation of the problem.

"I don't know it (Health Canada) though this through," she told her 
council colleagues Monday. "It's really appalling."

Under the new rules, anyone wanting to operate a federally licensed 
commercial medical marijuana growing operation will have to apply 
directly to Health Canada and will only be considered if they meet 
local zoning and business licence criteria set out by the 
municipality in which they want to locate.

To date only eight of the new commercial licences have been approved 
- - five in Ontario, one in Saskatchewan and two in B.C. The B.C. 
licences are in Maple Ridge and on Vancouver Island.

City Clerk Stephen Fleming said its unclear if any will be approved 
for Kelowna.

Despite that, he said, the city has heard from about 20 potential 
applicants, some more serious than others.

In addition to the zoning amendments, which will go to a public 
hearing March 18, the city is also creating a new business licence 
category that includes criteria that is the same as the criteria set 
out by Health Canada, such as the need for proper security, 
ventilation and other health and safety measures.

Concerns about the B.C. Agricultural Land Commission saying earlier 
that the new medical marijuana commercial growing operations could be 
allowed on agricultural land appeared to be put to rest when city 
staff told council because the city will only allow them on 
industrial property, its unlikely the commission would allow land in 
the Agricultural Land Reserve to be rezoned industrial to allow such a use.

In dealing with the issue, Kelowna has followed the lead of several 
other B.C. municipalities in restricting the placement of potential 
future commercial medical marijuana growing facilities to industrial land.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom