Regulatory process irks would-be shop owners
Only about 35 more pot stores throughout the province would be able to open quickly if a moratorium on issuing new licences was lifted today, a senior Alberta Gaming, Liquor and Cannabis official said Wednesday.
About five per cent of the roughly 700 active store applications received by the province have met all the regulatory requirements of the commission and municipalities, said Dave Berry, vice-president of regulation for the AGLC.
“There’s a lot of stores awaiting municipal licences or background checks ... It’s definitely a difficult position for them,” said Berry.
“I’m hoping that five per cent will grow; we continue working full time (on approvals).”
He was responding to a survey done by retailer group Alberta Cannabis Collective (ABCC) about the financial effects on the industry as a result of the halt on issuing further store licences, announced Nov. 21, due to a shortage of cannabis.
There’s a lot of stores awaiting municipal licences or background checks ... It’s definitely a difficult position
If the province’s original expectation of as many as 250 stores opened by October 2019 isn’t realized, the ABCC said it could cost applicants $13 million and 1,800 jobs.
For now, 65 stores throughout the province — 20 in Calgary — have been green-lighted by the AGLC to sell marijuana and there’s no word on when the licence freeze might end.
AGLC background checks to weed out serious criminality among industry players can take four months to complete, said Berry.
“If someone applied for a licence in September, they likely wouldn’t be getting one today,” he said, adding that the process is vital in ensuring the legal integrity of the industry.
In a statement, the ABCC said that five per cent figure is a reflection of the demanding and lengthy regulatory process facing applicants.
“The process to get a licence is very long and there’s essentially three sides to it,” the group stated. “It’s very onerous.”
The ABCC also said some applicants are in limbo after delaying the physical build-out of their stores due to doubts created by the moratorium and other factors.
“They’re putting the brakes on completely because of the uncertainty,” it said.
Many applicants, the group said, don’t know where they stand in the AGLC’s licensing queue due to a lack of communication.
In Calgary, city officials said they’ve issued 27 business licences, which include the 20 stores so far sanctioned to sell cannabis by the AGLC. And dozens of bids for stores in Calgary have been held back due to appeals against city approvals and refusals of their development permits.
But the city’s subdivision and development appeal board has fast-tracked the process and now counts 37 out of an original 113 cases that have yet to receive a written decision, said Jeremy Fraser, manager of quasi-judicial boards.
It appears this process could be wrapped up by late February, he said.
“It is moving along and our focus is getting to the point of certainty, so businesses and communities can have some certainty on land use,” said Fraser.
Meanwhile, the AGLC’s Berry said there’s still no indication when the freeze on licences it issues to stores will be lifted.
But he said the commission is making some tentative progress in finding new licensed cannabis suppliers to add to its current list of 15.
“There are expressions of interest from licensed producers with the goal ... to increase our supply — but to be fair, there aren’t a lot out there,” said Berry.