In the midst of the fentanyl crisis, a local organization that provides overdose training and harm reduction is bracing for the loss of a major chunk of its funding. ANKORS (AIDS Network Kootenay Outreach and Support Society) was founded in 1992 at the height of the HIV/AIDS crisis and provides services around HIV and Hepatitis C, harm reduction and prevention education. Originally established in Castlegar, the organization now has offices in Cranbrook and Nelson, and between the two may soon lose five employees and a significant part of its funding. [continues 1529 words]
Rossland's first marijuana dispensary opened its door last week. Rossland Dispensary is the first business of its kind in the Golden City, opening the same week that Nelson city council moved forward with an amendment to prohibit marijuana dispensaries in all zones of Nelson. The Queen City currently has seven dispensaries, all of which operate without a business license, since Nelson won't issue them to illegal businesses. But the City of Rossland has taken a different approach, and Rossland Dispensary is operating with a business license. [continues 649 words]
Rossland Dispensary is the first business of its kind in the Golden City, opening the same week that Nelson city council moved forward with an amendment to prohibit marijuana dispensaries in all zones of Nelson. The Queen City currently has seven dispensaries, all of which operate without a business license, since Nelson won't issue them to illegal businesses. But the City of Rossland has taken a different approach, and Rossland Dispensary is operating with a business license. "Our stance is as it's a retail business - that's how we classify it - the city bylaws that relate to it areĀ a business license bylaw and a zoning bylaw, and none of the city's bylaws - either the zoning or the business license - specifically state that a business is required to be federally legal," says Stacey Lightbourne, planner and GIS technician for the City of Rossland. "So we have taken the position that because our bylaws don't say anything about it, it's not up to us to enforce a federal law." [continues 493 words]
