COURTENAY, B.C. – With pot legalization on the horizon (as in Oct. 17), the City of Courtenay wants to hear from you.
An open house is being held on Wednesday to seek feedback on proposed regulations for recreational cannabis in the city.
The public is invited to the Florence Filberg Centre (411 Anderton Avenue) on July 4 from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. to review materials, speak with staff, and provide input.
City of Courtenay director of development services Ian Buck said the open house will help residents learn more about the proposed regulations in Courtenay, while allowing them to have a say on how they should be implemented and enforced.
Buck said “as a first step in the regulatory process” the City of Courtenay has already been working on zoning amendments to define and restrict storefront cannabis retailers with a public hearing scheduled for today (July 3).
“This open house event on July 4 is the next step and it will help us guide policies and regulations related to recreational cannabis specific to our community,” noted Buck.
“We want to hear if the community has a preference for distances between individual retail outlets or between retail outlets and uses such as schools, daycares or parks,” he added. “Are there preferred hours of operation? Should we restrict smoking in all public places? These are just some of the ways we can regulate cannabis locally and we look forward to hearing from everyone.”
The federal government has announced the legalization of cannabis starting Oct. 17.
The proposed regulations are expected to be finalized this summer in time for fall legalization. For more information, click here.
