Pubdate: Fri, 23 Sep 2016
Source: Ottawa Sun (CN ON)
Copyright: 2016 Canoe Limited Partnership
Contact: http://www.ottawasun.com/letter-to-editor
Website: http://www.ottawasun.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/329
Author: Jacquie Miller
Page: 11

NOT HIGH ON POT SHOP

New location upsets local parents

Parents in Orleans are furious that an illegal pot shop has opened
where their children attend martial arts classes and after-school tutoring.

A marijuana dispensary called CannaGreen opened on Sept. 11 in a
building on St. Joseph Boulevard that also houses The Edge Taekwon-Do
Academy and Kumon Math and Reading Centre. All the businesses share a
parking lot in the back.

"This is killing me, it's stressing me out," said parent Nawal Zayat
who, like a dozen other parents asked, said the dispensary should move
somewhere else.

The parents can't understand why an illegal shop selling cannabis in
the form of brownies, cookies, pop and teddy-bear candy is allowed to
operate alongside businesses that cater to children.

"I don't want to tell my eight-year old boy there is drugs there. We
don't want our kids exposed at this young age. They may want to try
it."

Fawzia Omar said she plans to pull her three young children out of
Kumon. "We are terrified," she said. "I don't want my kids to be
exposed to that kind of environment.

"A business like this shouldn't be so close to kids."

Taekwondo school owner Joel Denis said he was upset, too. "If these
places are not going to be shut down, and they're allowed to operate,
then there should be rules, and one of the rules should be they
shouldn't operate in proximity to establishments that have children."

Denis said he was disappointed that the owner of the building rented
to a pot shop. The owner did not return phone calls on Wednesday or
Thursday.

The ward's councillor, Jody Mitic, said on Thursday that he's received
30 complaints from residents about CannaGreen. He said he's spoken to
the Ottawa police, who say they are investigating. "I'm not allowed to
say any more."

At least 15 marijuana dispensaries have opened in town. "Right now
these places are more or less Nawal Zayat operating in the wild west,"
said Mitic.

None of the dispensaries has a business licence. City bylaws don't
include provisions for illegal pot shops.

Mayor Jim Watson has repeatedly declined to comment on the issue. "The
federal government regulates marijuana laws, and Ottawa Police has the
jurisdiction to enforce them if a complaint arises," a statement from
his office said.

The federal government says these dispensaries are all illegal, and
municipalities and police forces are struggling to figure out what to
do.

Most dispensaries say they serve medical marijuana patients, and
screen customers to make sure they have a medical condition. Medical
marijuana is legal in Canada, but only if purchased from producers
licensed by Health Canada, who send the products by mail.

The federal government has promised to introduce legislation to
legalize recreational marijuana in the spring and "strictly regulate"
sales to keep pot out of the hands of children.

In the meantime, it's become a free-for-all. Federal politicians warn
that products sold at the illegal dispensaries are unregulated, and
may be unsafe.

Only one parent interviewed was not alarmed about the CannaGreen shop.
The man, who declined to give his name, said he would prefer that
medical marijuana is sold in pharmacies, but explained to his
10-year-old son that marijuana will soon be legal for adults. "It's
coming, whether we like it or not," he said.
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MAP posted-by: Matt