Pubdate: Fri, 12 Jun 2015
Source: Vancouver Courier (CN BC)
Copyright: 2015 Vancouver Courier
Contact:  http://www.vancourier.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/474
Author: Mike Howell

POT SELLERS TELL CITY TO CHILL

Proposed Regulations Called Restrictive

Some of B.C.'s high-profile marijuana advocates sent a strong and 
consistent message to city council Wednesday night that it must make 
significant changes to a set of proposed rules to regulate pot shops 
before adopting legislation.

Though many of the 17 speakers on the first night of a public hearing 
commended city staff for the proposal, they argued that a $30,000 
annual licensing fee was too expensive, that restricting pot shops 
within 300 metres of each other is unfair and banning marijuana-laced 
goods for sale would create an unregulated market for "edibles" such 
as cookies and brownies.

"I just beg you to always keep the critically and chronically ill 
patients in mind," said Hilary Black, founder of the 18-year-old B.C. 
Compassion Club Society on Commercial Drive, where the business also 
operates a "wellness centre" that subsidized more than 3,300 health 
care appointments last year. "For 18 years, that organization has 
been serving some of the most marginalized and impoverished members 
of our community."

Black was one of more than 160 people registered to speak at the 
hearing, which was called to hear the public's views on an 
unprecedented proposal brought forward by a Canadian municipality to 
regulate more than 90 pot shops in Vancouver.

Connor Fesenmaier, 18, of Smarter Approaches to Marijuana Canada was 
the lone speaker Wednesday to call for an end to the hearing, saying 
the non-profit organization boycotted sending any more members to 
oppose the proposal.

"These hearings should not be taking place," Fesenmaier said. "The 
federal government has made it abundantly clear that these 
dispensaries are illegal operations and it remains an open question 
as to whether or not civic servants or employees can be charged for 
conspiring to violate federal laws."

Federal Health Minister Rona Ambrose has publicly expressed her 
disappointment with the city's proposal, saying the pot shops are 
illegal and will remain illegal under a Conservative government and 
should be closed by police.

Dana Larsen of Sensible B.C. said the proposed rules that recommend 
pot shops can't operate within 300 metres of each other or a school 
or community centre - or within certain areas of the Downtown 
Eastside - will possibly mean he'll have to close one or both of his 
dispensaries, which are located on East Hastings and at Thurlow and 
Davie. While city staff estimate a maximum of 94 pot shops could 
operate under new legislation, Larsen's analysis is that the rules 
would only allow 40 to 50 shops.

Despite's the city's recommendation to ban anyone under 19 from 
entering a dispensary, he said minors should be allowed to visit a 
pot shop in the company of an adult or guardian.

"In many cases, a mother might have a young infant or a child and 
having to find babysitting or leave that kid somewhere else while 
they pop into a dispensary to get their medicine just seems overly 
restrictive," said Larsen, who also argued against precluding 
operators with criminal records to be granted a business licence. 
"Certainly someone who's got a conviction for marijuana possession or 
even for marijuana trafficking, I don't really see why that should 
limit them from operating a dispensary. If anything, it means they've 
got experience in the industry and understand it better."

Lawyer Kirk Tousaw, who recently brought a case before the Supreme 
Court of Canada arguing for a person's right to access goods infused 
with marijuana, told council that restricting sales to only marijuana 
oil would create a black market for edible cannabis goods 
manufactured by unregulated suppliers.

"It will increase harm rather than decrease harm," Tousaw said. "Food 
safe requirements, labelling and child-proof containers promote 
health. The proposal to ban edible products other than cooking oils 
will not deal with those purported goals. In fact, it is likely to 
cause the opposite results."

(The Supreme Court of Canada released a decision Thursday morning 
saying that edibles and other cannabis-infused products such as tea 
can legally be consumed. It's not known what effect the ruling will 
have on the city's proposed regulations.)

Dr. Patricia Daly, chief medical health officer for Vancouver Coastal 
Health, has previously stated her support for the regulations, saying 
a ban on edibles is related to the growing evidence of the harm of 
such products, particularly in the states in America that have 
legalized marijuana.

"Even putting these in child-resistant containers in the U.S. has not 
been a deterrent for poisinings," Daly told council.

In a presentation to begin the hearings, city manager Penny Ballem 
provided council with new information on the proposal, including 
statistics that showed 18,383 British Columbians are authorized to 
possess marijuana for medical purposes. That's in comparison to 
19,501 patients in the rest of Canada.

B.C. also leads the way in number of marijuana plants allowed to be 
grown for medicinal purposes at 2,073,285, compared to 899,489 in 
other parts of the country.

"So we constitute 70 per cent of the medicinal production by number 
of plants and 50 per cent of the authorized users," said Ballem, who 
also outlined criteria for a potential operator to obtain a business 
licence, which includes reviewing an applicant's previous business practices.

So far, Ballem added, the feedback from the public on the proposal is 
that "some people think we're too strict, and some people's input is 
that we're too lenient." If council agrees to the proposal, estimated 
start-up costs to implement the legislation in the first year is $1.4 million.

The hearing resumes Thursday night at 6 p.m. and will likely continue 
on Saturday.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom