Window on heritage a foil for pot shops
How much is that doobie in the window?
It’s a tune that may never be sung under new provincial pot regulations, which require windows in cannabis storefronts to be opaque.
Those new provincial regulations are butting up against Victoria’s bylaws and design guidelines in parts of downtown that stipulate windows on street storefronts should be transparent.
The city’s design guidelines, which are not specific to cannabis shops, encourage transparent windows at street level to enhance the pedestrian experience, promote safety, and help create a “vibrant downtown experience,” city staff say. They would recommend against applications wanting to move in a different direction.
“We anticipate that in some buildings, a non-transparent window could be contrary to city design guidelines or heritage standards,” said director of engagement Bill Eisenhauer.
“But we have not undertaken detailed analysis of specific locations.”
He said city staff are contacting their provincial counterparts to get a better understanding of the interaction between provincial and municipal regulations.
While provincial regulations trump city bylaws, the province’s desire to keep prying eyes out of cannabis shops could ultimately could push pot retailers out of Victoria’s downtown heritage buildings, city councillors were told.
City solicitor Tom Zworski said a request to make a window in a heritage building opaque likely would require a heritage alteration permit.
“It sounds to me like this is setting up a situation where if we can’t find a resolution with the province, no cannabis shop could be in a heritage building,” said Coun. Marianne Alto, noting a heritage alteration permit to make windows in a heritage building opaque “would likely be declined, which would inevitably mean they would have to move.”
The issue came up in the past week as councillors considered a rezoning application from Farm, a cannabis retailer that wants to increase the floor space of its storefront at 1402 Douglas St. to meet anticipated growing demand.
Councillors supported the idea of sending the rezoning application to a public hearing, but first want to hear back from the heritage advisory committee on the impact of the provincial regulation.
The idea of windows in city heritage buildings going opaque just doesn’t fly, said Mayor Lisa Helps, noting, “Our heritage buildings are part of what makes downtown Victoria so special.”
Helps said it’s unfortunate that the Farm application has to be a test case. Farm has already gone through city rezoning and licensing for its existing space.
“This dispensary already has the ability to be in this space. They’re looking to expand, which I’m not inherently against, but I am against it if it’s going to be four clouded-out windows on one of our main thoroughfare streets,” she said.
“I think it’s probably something they [the province] didn’t think about when they made these regulations — what would this mean in a heritage building on a pedestrian thoroughfare downtown.”