City seeks clarification from LCRB about cannabis stores in downtown core
Residents recently expressed their concern to the City of Fort St. John over the abundance of cannabis retail stores popping up throughout the downtown core. Prompted by those concerns, the city’s corporate officer, Bonnie McCue wrote a letter to the Liquor and Cannabis Regulation Branch (LCRB) in Victoria.
In her letter, McCue noted that the “steady rise in the number of cannabis retail stores does not appear to be slowing down and it seems unlikely that this trend is unique to Fort St. John. It has been Council’s practice to not reject applications where there is no conflict with our zoning bylaw.
“There are now five cannabis retail stores currently operating in Fort St. John with one more opening, pending approval. By comparison, there are eight liquor retail stores in operation. If this trend continues, it will not be long before the number of cannabis retail stores grows to be equal to or outnumber that of liquor stores.”
At the June 23 council meeting, council discussed McCue’s letter and the response from the LCRB.
“The reason this came up is there was an inquiry that was brought forward from the public, what regulations are out there, what’s going on here,” said Councillor Tony Zabinsky.
“The steady rise in the number of cannabis retail stores does not appear to be slowing down.”
McCue’s letter continued, asking for clarification why there is a moratorium on liquor retail store licenses – which is intended to ensure the market doesn’t become overloaded – but there isn’t a similar limitation on the number of cannabis retail stores licenses.
The LCRB’s reply emphasized the government’s commitment to supporting a robust, diverse and sustainable cannabis retail economy, but noted the legislation does contain market controls, including:
Licence Cap, limiting the number of cannabis retail stores a company, person or group may hold to eight;
Tied House, which prohibits financial or other arrangements between cannabis retail store licensees and federally licensed producers; and
Vertical integration, restricting ownership of cannabis retail stores by federally licensed producers.
In addition, the LCRB’s letter said that the province’s cannabis framework enables local governments and Indigenous peoples to make decisions about cannabis retail stores in their communities. A retail store license won’t be issued without a recommendation from the community where the proposed store would be located.
Some municipalities have put limits on the number of stores allowed in their community, store distancing and zoning rules.
“It came down to that they don’t have a numbered amount that you’re allowed to have in your community, but they do have a numbered amount that one owner can own, that number is eight,” Zabinsky said.
“So unfortunately, they don’t have regulations in place presently that states you can only have three or five in your area.”
The cannabis market controls are currently being reviewed by the LCRB, and one of the things they are considering is distance criteria.
In Fort St. John, Cannabis Businesses are restricted to the Downtown Core, General Commercial and Highway Commercial zones, on parcels that aren’t within either 200 metres of a school or 100 metres of a park.
The City currently has no limit on the number of cannabis retail stores that can operate in the community.