Although there are still a number of details that need to be ironed out and questions that need to be answered by both the province and Ottawa, the Town of Outlook has given the green light for a cannabis retail outlet to be added to the local business community.
Town council voted on the matter at their regularly-scheduled meeting on Wednesday night, February 14. Two people from the public sat in to hear the outcome of the decision.
Mayor Ross Derdall asked all of council to weigh in with their views and feelings on the possible business, and said himself that he looks at the idea strictly as a business venture. Councillor Donna Smith touched on the news that the village of Lucky Lake will be the future home of a marijuana-growing facility, and asked if council wanted people leaving the community to find the product elsewhere, taking away from possible business dollars within Outlook.
Councillor Kyle McLeod echoed Derdall’s sentiment, feeling that “it’s a business like anything else” and that it’s something that would bring more people to town.
Councillor Maureen Applin said it’ll be important to keep working out the finer details with the provincial and federal governments on just what the rules and regulations will be, but also felt it was something that could only add to Outlook’s business district.
“We may as well be collecting the tax dollars on it,” she said.
Councillor Floyd Childerhose was against the idea, and shared that he had actually received calls from residents who had asked him to vote no on the decision. Childerhose felt that perhaps the public could have been engaged more in the decision by way of a possible meeting to hear views and concerns, but it was said that the topic had already permeated the public for weeks leading up to this particular council meeting. To that point, Derdall said he was surprised there hadn’t been more vocal input from the public, whether they were in favour or not, but did say that some who’d spoken to him were in support of it.
Councillor and deputy mayor David Simonson was in favour of it, but again was concerned about the lack of rules and fine details from both the provincial and federal governments.
With that, council voted on whether to allow for a cannabis outlet, and the vote was a majority in favour of it.
In the first week of January, the provincial government revealed that the Saskatchewan Liquor and Gaming Authority (SLGA) would issue approximately 60 retail permits to sell cannabis and related products to private operators in as many as 40 municipalities and First Nations communities around the province. Towns and cities that were eligible to have a business permit to sell the product were compiled into a list, and Outlook was among those included.
Minister Responsible for SLGA Gene Makowsky said at the time that it was important for community leaders to have a voice in saying yes or no to such a venture, and in this initial stage of discussion surrounding marijuana legalization in Canada, town councils such as the one in Outlook are the first ones who make the decision over whether to allow or opt out of having the permit to have a cannabis outlet.
The province has yet to reveal specifics regarding the criteria for retail applications and timelines, as well as permit licensing fees and other finer details surrounding the operation of a cannabis outlet, and it’s expected that the minimum age for consumption of cannabis will be made this spring.
