Pubdate: Tue, 28 Mar 2017
Source: Ottawa Citizen (CN ON)
Copyright: 2017 Postmedia Network Inc.
Contact:  http://www.ottawacitizen.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/326
Author: Jacquie Miller

POT PROMISE DOESN'T HELP BUDTENDERS FACING CHARGES

Canadians may be able to celebrate Canada Day in 2018 by legally
smoking a joint, but that's small consolation to the 21-year-old clerk
who was working the security desk at the Cannabis Culture shop on Bank
Street on Monday.

He shrugged off the news that the federal government plans to have all
the regulations in place for legal pot by July 1, 2018. That's the
timeline reported by CBC, citing unnamed sources. The government had
promised to introduce legislation to legalize recreational marijuana
this spring.

"I'm hoping, but I have my doubts," said the budtender, one of five
people arrested on May 9 when police raided the shop.

"All they do is lie," he said, expressing a common suspicion among
those in the "cannabis community" of government promises.

The man didn't want his identity revealed because after he was charged
with drug trafficking, he was released from custody with conditions
that included not going into a marijuana dispensary.

He was sitting at the front desk of the Bank Street shop, checking IDs
and buzzing a steady stream of customers into the backroom that
contains dried weed and other cannabis products. He shrugged. "I have
a seventh grade education. I can't really get a job anywhere else. I
have bills. I can't just sit at home and be broke."

He said it's a great job, in a friendly environment. Cannabis Culture
is paying the legal fees for the five clerks who were charged during
the raid. They are to appear in court Wednesday, when supporters are
planning a rally in front of the courthouse.

Fellow budtender Ming Saad called police raids on the illegal shops
"ridiculous." Ottawa police have raided 14 dispensaries since
November, arresting 29 people.

"They're going to be legalizing it. I don't understand why they are
wasting so much money."

Cannabis activists such as she aren't willing to wait any longer, she
said.

"We don't want to keep people away from their medication, or their
recreational use. I believe I'm doing something that's helping people,
even if at the end of the day I'm in handcuffs."

As Canada moves to legalize pot, a key question will be the fate of
the dispensaries that have popped up in some major cities. Vancouver,
Victoria, Ottawa, Hamilton and Toronto have the most shops.

It's widely expected the federal government will license and control
the production of marijuana, but give provinces the power to decide
where it will be sold, as recommended by a federal task force that
studied the issue.

The task force recommended that provinces work in "close
collaboration" with municipalities. That will be especially important
if storefront sales are allowed, as the task force recommends.

The City of Ottawa should start getting ready now, says Counc. Riley
Brockington. Brockington, who is vice-chair of the city 's community
and protective services committee, says he will try to get the issue
added to the bylaw department's packed work schedule.

Brockington first consulted bylaw staff last fall after a dispensary
opened in his ward across from a Montessori school.

"The position of the (legal) office is that you can't regulate
something that is illegal. You can't say, 'Oh yes, you're illegal, but
since you're going to be open anyway, we're going to determine where
you are permitted.' Because the answer right now is you aren't
permitted to be located anywhere."

However, the city can start consulting with the community and with
businesses interesting in selling marijuana, says Brockington.

Vancouver, Victoria and several smaller cities in B.C. have regulated
illegal dispensaries. In Vancouver, which pioneered the idea,
for-profit dispensaries pay a $30,000 business licence and have
restrictions on their location and operation.

Brockington says he'd like to see Ottawa adopt similar regulations
once pot is legal.

"I definitely want us to be prepared and ready well before July 1 of
2018. That's not the date to start having the conversation."

Ottawa Coun. Mathieu Fleury, who has expressed concerns about Montreal
Road in his ward turning into pot shop alley, says the city won't be
able to do much until the federal government sets the regulatory framework.

He expects Ontario might decide to distribute marijuana at standalone
stores similar to the LCBO. "It's a controlled substance, so why would
they approach it in a different way?"

Fleury would support the idea of Marijuana Control Board outlets,
saying they would be easier for cities to regulate than privately
owned shops. If there was a problem with a store, there would be a
central contact, rather than having to deal with many individual
owners, he said.
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MAP posted-by: Matt