Medical marijuana dispensaries are illegal according to the Canadian government. But that hasn’t stopped them from popping up, especially in Vancouver, British Columbia. That doesn’t sit well with the City Council of Vancouver, which is trying to figure out a way to curb the establishments. Per Marijuana Business Daily:
The city council has “decided to step in” with a new ordinance that will boost licensing fees and crack down on zoning for cannabis businesses in light of a federal prohibition of MMJ dispensaries, City Manager Penny Ballem told The Canadian Press.
Despite their illegal status, more than 80 dispensaries have cropped up in just the last two years in Vancouver, according to the report, leading city officials to consider stricter zoning and business license rules. A draft proposal will be presented to the council and the mayor next week.
But in a strange twist of fate, the proposal may be dead before it gets any kind of vote. Canadian Health Minister Rona Ambrose “is warning Vancouver’s mayor not to regulate the city’s illegal medical marijuana dispensaries,” according to The Globe and Mail.
Vancouver’s City Council is proposing a $30,000 licensing fee, that dispensaries be located more than 300 meters away from schools, community centers, and other dispensaries. The dispensaries serve a vital role for medical marijuana patients, who I’m sure are tried of paying astronomical prices for medical marijuana to licensed medical marijuana companies in Canada.
