Closure of Illegal Dispensaries

Big Rex: That's just it - the rules they are making are spurious. They have rules in place for Pharmacies and Liquor stores to follow. We do not know what is coming down the chute in regards for legislation 2017.
All this bluster and talk could be in vain if cannabis will only be sold in pharmacies for medical cannabis and liquor stores for recreational.

Not saying this is my choice...we are all in the dark to the nefarious plans of those on high. (pun intended)

What a Pandora's box...

Just a few of my thoughts though.

The law is the law. Circumvented it very much better for quality years ago.
But these “dispensaries?” Need to be straight up validated and CBD is only a starting point
for... issues that alleviates you, tom, dick, or harry.

Sadly, half of them probably have other motivations... (greed) and that's realism.
Enter the GoC  who will exploit it well before we are baby fed the legislation.
Did I forget Sobey's or a Superstore?  

Just My Opinion.

Stay very well all.

IMO, the rules seem to be going too far. Like I said, there are no rules about where you can have a pharmacy, and how many of those are there in Vancouver? What about liquor stores? As long as these stores are selling to only those who have a legitimate prescriptions, and agree to be monitored, at least until next year, then they should be treated just like any other business, that has a restricted clientele.

I want it sold at the canex so I can collect points!

I am not saying there shouldn't be storefronts. I wish there were legal storefronts.

I agree with the rules BC has in place but have reservations regarding the license fees. At present these fees are under review.

BC seems to be the only province that is trying to get a handle on the situation. Having these rules ready to put in place for 2017 is forward thinking but we do not know what the new Cannabis laws will be.

Bottom line federally the storefront is still illegal.

Dove, these stores can be licensed, maybe not federally, but certainly locally. Or at least they could, if they met the new criteria about being at least 300m from a school or community centre. I was also curious if every business has to pay $30000 for a license, or if that amount was to act as a hurdle for these shops, and according to Vancouver by-laws, the only other sizable cost for licensing is for Malt liquor wholesalers at $15000/year. The third highest is only $1000/year for horse racing. So it is obvious that the politicians are doing everything in their power to close these shops, without coming right out and saying they don't want them in the first place.

Navrat wrote:I'm sure once it's legalized nobody will care except the government which will only care if it's cut goes missing or lowered!

Sure let 400 - 500 - 1000 stores crop up now and embed themselves in society without any regulations or law. Like weeds in your lawn that can never be eradicated or controlled once it starts.
Who cares.

bigrex wrote:They are registered are they not? I saw one interview where the owner had to send away samples of each strain periodically for testing, to ensure that it was safe. As with any business, they would be able to keep the majority of the profit, especially if they are growing the product, and not having to buy it from a third party, but they would still have to submit portions to both provincial and federal governments for sales tax.

Since Cannabis is only legally sold through the mail through registered places listed on the government website (http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/dhp-mps/marihuana/info/list-eng.php) any storefronts are not registered or licensed.

The storefront location can opt to send samples for testing - it is good business.

My question as to where they are getting their product comes down to the fact that any registered/licensed supplier is prohibited to sell to storefronts. So storefronts are possibly growing their own or getting from other grey or illegal sources.

bigrex wrote:

And Dove, the thought of the flames beginning made me laugh. I can imagine if one of these shops caught fire, there would be a heck of a lot of people downwind getting the munchies. lol.

Excerpts from article dated 25 April 2016:
http://www.vancitybuzz.com/2016/04/vancouver-pot-shops-must-close-april-29/

Pot shops in Vancouver were invited to make preliminary applications to find out whether they met the city’s new zoning rules by August 21 last year.

Once they passed that stage, they then had to apply for a development permit, followed by a business licence at a cost of $30,000 for commercial enterprises or $1000 for compassion clubs.

Only a handful of pot shops have made it that far.

Full breakdown of the figures
Here’s the situation as it stands:

(Note: Figures collated by Vancity Buzz in liaison with the City of Vancouver, up to date at the time of writing)

Stage 1 – preliminary application
176 pot shops made preliminary application
132 were rejected and asked to close within six months
62 appealed (8 were rejected, 2 were approved, 2 were deferred, 1 withdrew, the rest have hearings scheduled)
All 129 pot shops that received a rejection will face enforcement
Stage 2 – development permit
46 pot shops made it to this stage
7 were granted development permit
15 have applications under review
24 may be in a cluster situation yet to be assessed, according to the city
Any pot shops rejected will face enforcement
Stage 3 – business license
7 pot shops made it to his stage
4 have applications under review
3 have not yet applied and may face enforcement
Any pot shops rejected will face enforcement
Two things worth noting for clarity – both of which are estimated to make up only a small proportion of applications, but for which figures were not available:

Some rejected shops may have relocated and been approved in a separate application.
Some shops that applied had not yet opened. They may or may not have opened since.

No funding for legal action
Andreea Toma, Chief Licence Inspector, told Vancity Buzz the city has not set aside any funding source for legal action they may need to take against the shops.

She said the $30,000 business licence fee was supposed to help provide dedicated resources for inspection and enforcement. But, she said, those fees need to be reviewed.

“Because we don’t have any money up front. You don’t actually pay the $30,000 until you’ve gone through the entire process, you’ve passed and that’s the last piece – you remit your payment, you get your business licence.”

No pot shops in Vancouver have paid the $30,000 fee yet.

Meanwhile, Toma admitted the city does not know what to expect after April 29.

“We’ve heard from some of the folks in the industry that they do want to play by rules, they want to be regulated,” she said.

“We gave them six months [from the time of rejection.] Now that time is up. There is no more leniency to be given. Everybody needs to be treated fairly across the board.”

They are registered are they not? I saw one interview where the owner had to send away samples of each strain periodically for testing, to ensure that it was safe. As with any business, they would be able to keep the majority of the profit, especially if they are growing the product, and not having to buy it from a third party, but they would still have to submit portions to both provincial and federal governments for sales tax.

And Dove, the thought of the flames beginning made me laugh. I can imagine if one of these shops caught fire, there would be a heck of a lot of people downwind getting the munchies. lol.

I'm sure once it's legalized nobody will care except the government which will only care if it's cut goes missing or lowered!

So is anyone willing to weigh in on this controversial topic?
http://www.vancitybuzz.com/2016/04/vancouver-pot-shops-must-close-april-29/
http://globalnews.ca/news/2645660/in-canadas-illegal-pot-market-a-legalized-future-takes-shape/

These shops are still opening.
They are easy to access.
Where is their product coming from?
Where are their profits going?
In Vancouver they do not hold business licenses. (see article)
The storefronts give out a "card" but since they are not a legal provider it is not valid. The patient is liable for arrest for possession.

Let the flames begin...