Pubdate: Thu, 24 Mar 2016
Source: Chilliwack Times (CN BC)
Copyright: 2016 Chilliwack Times
Contact:  http://www.chilliwacktimes.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1357
Author: Paul J. Henderson

NOT THEIR FIRST WEED DISPENSARY

Chilliwack is just the latest community to face the legal and
jurisdictional morass of medical marijuana dispensaries.

Abbotsford has been dealing with the issue for months, and is
currently seeking an injunction to shut down a pot shop and ban the
owner from the city.

Don Briere owns over a dozen dispensaries in B.C. and Ontario, was
denied a business licence by the city of Abbotsford. The city won an
injunction in B.C. Supreme Court in January which a judge said
Briere's Weeds Glass and Gifts store violated city bylaws.

Briere is steadfast and says not only will he stay open now, he'll
stay open if a judge rules against him and orders another of his
shops, Mary Jane's Glass and Gifts, to shut down.

Meanwhile, municipalities across B.C. have been forced to address this
situation where, in the face of promised federal legalization, they
are asked to regulate what is still an illegal product.

WeeMedical Dispensary Society opened up in Chilliwack on March 19,
three days after being threatened with fines and legal action by city
hall.

WeeMedical also opened up a similar shop in Port Alberni in October,
but there the municipality took a very different approach.

While Chilliwack was "very, very aggressive," according to WeeMedical
Dispensary Society board member Mary Joan Liu, Port Alberni took a
softer approach.

Liu's son Justin Liu runs a WeeMedical dispensary in Nanaimo and, as
in Chilliwack last week, he opened up in Port Alberni overnight with
no city approval.

This led to months of debate, culminating in a 5-2 vote last week to
regulate dispensaries in Port Alberni in a way similar to Vancouver.

"We changed our zoning bylaw so that medical marijuana was a permitted
use in commercial zones," Port Alberni Coun. Chris Alemany told the
Times.

They also issued a business licence and added stipulations in the
zoning to forbid dispensaries within 300 metres of schools nor within
1,000 metres of one another.

"It's a contentious issue but came together around trying to recognize
that we had a potential problem on our hands if more started to open
up."

And open up they did, with a total of nine at one point in the
community of approximately 17,000.

But at least with the strict regulation in place, Alemany says now
they have a stick to force those within 1,000 metres of WeeMedical, so
far the only one to apply and receive a business licence, to shut down.

As for any advice to the City of Chilliwack, Alemany said
municipalities are stuck between a rock and a hard place with this
one.

"You are in a terrible situation," he said. "It's not a situation I
think that's fair for any city council to be in. The only thing I
would suggest is listen to your community and make the best decision
you think is appropriate."

At least for now, city hall isn't listening to community feedback on
the subject, but instead relying on legal advice.

- - with files from the Abbotsford News and the Alberni Valley News
- ---
MAP posted-by: Matt