Buffers limiting glut of pot shops
City says separation rules working to prevent clusters in communities
With more than 180 decisions made on cannabis store applications, one city councillor says Calgary’s list of approved and rejected sites shows separation requirements are successfully preventing clusters of businesses in communities.
However, the city’s map of retail cannabis applications shows some areas of Calgary have attracted more pot shops than others.
Inner-city Coun. Druh Farrell said the fact that multiple proposed stores have been refused along 10th Street N.W. and Kensington Road, while two development permits in the area have been approved, indicates the buffer zones mandated between stores “is working.”
“We knew when we saw the flood of applications (in some areas) come in that the majority of them would be unsuccessful, because of the separation rules,” she said.
“We’ve been reassuring communities that saw the flood of applications that the separation distance would take effect and limit the number within each community.”
As of Friday, City of Calgary staff expected to have decisions made on all 187 development permit applications for cannabis stores submitted in April.
As of Thursday, 83 had been approved, 11 were pending and 61 had been refused.
The approved applications are subject to a 21-day appeal period before a development permit can be issued. Since April, further applications have been submitted, bringing the total number of active applications to 260.
The city ’s land-use bylaw requires setback distances that are aimed at limiting pot sales near sites including hospitals, schools and other cannabis stores. The Development Authority can consider, in certain cases, requests for a reduction to the minimum separation distance between cannabis stores.
On the city ’s map of applications reviewed so far, other areas where multiple sites are listed as rejected close to approved locations include 17th Avenue S.W., 4th Street S.W., Inglewood, Bridgeland and 17th Avenue S.E. Stretches of the city dotted with prospective cannabis retailers include Macleod Trail, 17th Avenue S.E. and the 36th Street N.E. area
Northeast Coun. Ray Jones said a lot of applications were submitted for cannabis stores in the Sunridge area.
“I was told that all of them wouldn’t be accepted because of the setbacks that from each other is 300 metres,” he said.
“You don’t want too many in an area. One or two in the area I think would be ample, but I think we’re going to get more than that.”
Jones said while he hasn’t heard any complaints about particular cannabis-store sites, he has heard people complaining “that they’re even being allowed to open.”
“If they hit the rules of the landuse bylaw, there’s nothing we can do to stop them,” he noted, adding there was public opposition when liquor stores were first privatized.
Coun. Gian-Carlo Carra also suspects that cannabis retail could be a lot like liquor stores.
“With the right offerings, in the right way, on the right main streets, a number of them in one neighbourhood won’t be too much of a problem,” he said.
Jacqui Esler, executive director of the Mainstreet Bowness Business Improvement Association, said four applications for cannabis stores were submitted for Bowness Road. Two of those have been rejected and two have been approved by the city.
“The BIA board and the community didn’t want more than two maximum,” she said.
Esler added the board just wants to see well-run businesses.
The Calgary Downtown Association raised concerns in July about a potential over-concentration of cannabis shops along Stephen Avenue.
The city’s current map shows one approved site, one rejected, one under review and one pending appeal on 8th Avenue S.W.
In addition to a development permit, cannabis stores require a business licence, building permit and a licence from the Alberta Gaming and Liquor Commission. Stores will not be allowed to operate until Oct. 17, when recreational cannabis will become legal.