Pubdate: Sun, 26 Feb 2017
Source: Victoria Times-Colonist (CN BC)
Copyright: 2017 Times Colonist
Contact:  http://www.timescolonist.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/481
Author: Bill Cleverley
Page: A4

'UNFAIR' TO DENY POT LICENSING BID: LAWYER

No easy solution for two licence bids in same block, he says

It may be acceptable to hand out puppies on a first-come, first-served
basis, but the same can't be said for marijuana dispensary licences,
Vancouver lawyer Robert Laurie told Victoria councillors this past
week.

Laurie was speaking on behalf of Dominic Truong, who wants to open a
dispensary called Pure Releaf at 510-512 Yates St.

His application for rezoning and licensing was deferred because
another dispensary - Trees, already operating at 546 Yates St. - is
located in the same block and applied for licensing first.

Under city policy, dispensaries are not to be located within 200
metres of each other.

Truong filed his application about a month after the Trees application
was filed, Laurie said.

"Quick and easy solutions such as a first-come, first-served policy
might work if you're giving away a puppy, but I think the regulation
of dispensaries is certainly more complicated than that," he said.

Laurie noted that the policy allows council latitude, saying a reduced
distance might be warranted in locations such as a large urban
village, town centre or downtown.

The city put in the 200-metre limit in an attempt to avoid a
proliferation of marijuana retailers in some areas.

Laurie said it's clear the city wants to avoid "an undesirable
concentration" of cannabis retailers, but that clearly is not the case
with Truong's application.

"We don't even have a concentration yet, let alone an undesirable
one," he said, noting these were the first two applications in the
city.

In an interview, Laurie said both should move to public
hearing.

"We wanted to highlight that it's a completely unfair situation and
[that] without any understanding of the history or knowledge of the
operator and what their intentions, history and operating practices
are, you can't really make a fair decision," he said.

Laurie said Truong has a successful operating history in Vancouver,
where he has a licence pending. He has not opened an outlet in
Victoria "and yet is being penalized on grounds of fairness because he
did not get his application in on time before another operator, who
has opened illegally and is operating," Laurie said.

Coun. Geoff Young, who has expressed concerns about the 200-metre
policy, had some sympathy for Laurie's comments.

"I agree with him from the point of view of common sense and
reasonableness," Young said. "It's a completely different approach
from one we ever do use for rezoning. It is the one that we,
admittedly, have had to use for liquor stores."

Meanwhile, councillors were to decide whether to send another
marijuana retail operation to public hearing even though it's
technically too close to a school.

Under city policy, dispensaries must be at least 200 metres from a
school. Farmacy Dispensary, 3055 Scott St., had applied for a rezoning
to continue its operation in an existing commercial area.

Farmacy is 119 metres from the property line at Lansdowne Middle
School's sports field, though both city staff and the applicant point
out that the dispensary is 398 metres away from the main school building.

Staff had recommending sending the application forward, but the
application was withdrawn by Farmacy prior to consideration by
councillors at this week's committee of the whole.
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MAP posted-by: Matt