Cannabis quietly comes to Waterloo Region
Lineups were reported at cannabis shops across the country, but not in Ontario
“Weed Wednesday” came and went in Waterloo Region without much celebration or hype.
Around 4:20 p.m., more than 16 hours after cannabis officially became legal in Canada, Jeffrey Shaver stood at the corner of Hespeler Road and Isherwood Avenue and took a few puffs from his bong in front of the south division of the Waterloo Regional Police Service.
It was the same glass bong confiscated by police two years ago that sparked Shaver’s infamous thong-wearing, weed-smoking protests in front of Kitchener’s courthouse. He was joined by three supporters at the street corner, as a cold autumn wind whipped down Hespeler Road.
“There’s still a lot of work to be done on legalization, but this is a good start,” he said.
Unlike the traditional 4/20 celebrations held every April 20 to promote cannabis legalization and to reduce the stigma around the drug, legalization day was rather subdued. Lineups were reported at
cannabis shops across the country, but not in Ontario.
Currently, the only place to legally buy marijuana is online through the Ontario Cannabis Store, the government-run website that allows anyone over the age of 19 to purchase cannabis and have it delivered to their home.
Privately-operated stores will open next April, and municipalities have until Jan. 11 to decide if they want to allow them to operate within their borders.
On Wednesday afternoon, the Ontario government passed legislation giving the public permission to smoke cannabis anywhere they can smoke a cigarette, but they must be 19 or older, and cannot smoke in a car, on a boat, or within 20 metres of a playground or school.
Shaver, who is running for regional council in Cambridge, said the government made a mistake in delaying the opening of storefront operations because the waiting period for the delivery of cannabis and uncertainty about ordering it using a credit card could still drive consumers to the black market.
Still, Shaver took the opportunity to celebrate. Earlier this year, the professional standards branch of the Waterloo Regional Police ruled officers unlawfully arrested, searched and detained Shaver after he smoked medical marijuana in front of the Cambridge police station on Oct. 22, 2016. He was protesting a charge of marijuana possession laid two days earlier despite documentation supporting his claim it was medicinal.
“It’s more of a celebration (today) I guess,” he said.
In Waterloo, Dwight Darocha held a sale at his cannabis paraphernalia store Wednesday.
Darocha has owned the store, Different Strokes, for nearly 13 years and never imagined he would one day see the drug legalized in Canada.
“I never thought in my lifetime I’d be going through this,” he said.
But on Wednesday, he found himself explaining to a customer how to smoke it.
“I had a customer come in who has never smoked weed in his life,” he said.
After explaining the basics, the customer walked away with a grinder, papers and a rolling machine.
While he saw a bump in sales Wednesday morning, Darocha predicts his business model will soon have to evolve.
“I think there’s going to be more competition and I think that competition will involve stores that sell weed and paraphernalia together,” he said. “It’s something that I have to look at or I get left behind.”
Back in Cambridge, Ryan Caskenette was walking along Ainslie Street and smoking a joint, but he said nothing has really changed for him now that legalization has arrived.
“It feels a little safer, but it feels the same as before,” he said. “People are doing it, they’re going to still do it, they’re just not going to be afraid to do it.”