TISDALE — A direction has been set for a bylaw to restrict where cannabis retail stores could be located.
At their June 11 meeting, Tisdale council voted to ask town administration to draft a bylaw that would ban the stores within 150 metres of a school, daycare or park.
“That’s the proposal right now,” said Brad Hvidston, the town’s administrator. “Nothing’s passed.”
Such a bylaw would stop development of a cannabis store in the south end of downtown, where Tisdale Middle & Secondary School, Tiny Tornadoes Daycare, Memorial Park and Little Explorers Daycare are located. The store itself would have to be on a parcel of land zoned for commercial or industrial use.
“There isn’t any commercial 150 metres from Kinsmen Park, Lions Park or Tisdale Elementary,” Hvidston said.
Aiding council in its decision was a report from Crosby, Hanna and Associates, which helps the town with its zoning bylaw. That report gave three broad options on how to proceed: allow the stores on any commercial property, classify it as its own special use with its own set of parameters and allow it in certain commercial districts, or only allow it in out of the way industrial districts. Council chose the second.
There was some discussion from council if there was a need for restrictions. Arguably, it would be easier to conceal the purchase of cannabis products just outside of a store than it would be for a liquor store. At the end of the day, it was a direction council decided not to take.
“I think for us, in the infancy of this thing, the general public will understand why we made that decision to keep a bit of a buffer away from the schools,” said Coun. Carson Penner.
Hvidston said it would take until the end of August to draft and pass a bylaw. Cannabis is expected to be made legal in August at the earliest. Those that won the right to have a permit for a store from the provincial government will have to submit their final permit 45 days after legalization.
“We’ll have to do the first reading in the next meeting and then advertise in the paper for a couple of weeks and then pass it after that.”
Included in that process is a hearing for the public to express their concerns to council.
