Pubdate: Wed, 27 Apr 2016
Source: Vancouver Sun (CN BC)
Copyright: 2016 Postmedia Network Inc.
Contact:  http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/477
Author: Matt Robinson
Page: A2

REJECTED POT SHOPS FACE FINES, CLOSURES

Yet since August, the city has received 230 store applications

Even as Vancouver gears up to shut down pot shops that failed to meet
new licensing conditions, city hall faces a non-stop flow of new
requests to open such stores.

At last count, another 230 prospective pedlars have jumped in line
since the initial application period to operate a pot shop in the city
closed last August, all seeking business licences of their own,
according to city staff.

Another three stores have popped up without bothering to apply.
Despite the trio being slapped with 20 violation tickets between them,
one remains open and in a legal battle with the City of Vancouver,
said Andreea Toma, city director of licensing.

It has taken the city eight months and counting to sort through the
176 licence applications it received last summer after councillors
voted to regulate pot shops.

Now that the city has set up rules and processes, it should take less
time to work through applications for new shops, said Toma. But she
noted that bids could continue to come in for years as spaces open up
in locations that meet - or almost meet - the city's stringent
guidelines, such as not being too close to a school or another pot
shop.

Nearly four in five of the initial 176 applicants were turned down,
many of whom already had shops. Those among them who have chosen to
stay open could receive a dose of justice from inspectors as early as
Saturday.

City staff gave a six-month grace period to store owners who were
declined a licence, but after that ends on Friday, property use
inspectors will be free to issue daily $250 tickets to rejected pot
shops that remain open, Toma said.

"We knew when we enacted the bylaws and when we put the process
forward to bring a whole industry that is used to operating outside of
regulation into brand new regulations, we would need to have boots on
the ground," Toma said.

"We're expecting that on the 30th a lot of businesses will close their
doors," Toma said, adding that staff will be looking for violations.

Some pot shop owners have said they intend to ignore the city's
deadline and continue to operate. Chuck Varabioff, the owner of B.C.
Pain Society, said he would ready his chequebook for a daily fine.

Inspectors can ticket only the violations they witness, meaning any
pot shops not caught in the act would be spared a fine. But Toma said
the city is planning a range of tougher remedies for continuing cases,
including seeking court injunctions.

"We've given folks reminders, we've had a relationship with every
single applicant =C2=85 we've done more for this industry than I think
we've done for any other business. The expectation is if you are not
in a zone-compliant area that you will comply," Toma said, adding that
she believed most shops would.
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MAP posted-by: Matt