City staff report urges council to allow private pot stores in city

City council ought to allow cannabis stores to set up shop in Peterborough, recommends city staff in a new report.

Now that cannabis is legal, Ontario municipal councils have until Jan. 22 to vote on whether to allow privately run cannabis retail stores to operate within their boundaries.

Opting out of having cannabis stores isn’t recommended, states the staff report, because it would turn away investors.

“Rather, any such investments would be diverted to neighbouring municipalities that have not opted out,” states the report.

The report also states that Ontario Finance Minister Vic Fedeli will be tracking all municipal governments that opt out.

The Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO) warns that municipalities that opt out of the retail stores will be eligible for less tax money meant to offset costs related to the legalization of cannabis, the report states.

The Ontario government plans to give $40 million in federal excise tax on cannabis to municipal councils over the next two years to deal with the cost of cannabis legalization, the report states.

That’s going to mean at least $10,000 for every municipal government, explains the report — plus additional money for municipalities that allow cannabis retail stores.

The staff report also recommends that the city amend the municipal smoking bylaw so it’s legal to smoke cannabis anywhere that cigarette-smoking or vaping is allowed.

That would mean you could smoke cannabis at home or on public sidewalks, for instance, as well as in designated hotel rooms.

But under the proposed new rules, smoking cannabis would be prohibited in areas such as children’s playgrounds, cityowned sports fields, in restaurants and on bar patios.