Council says no to vape lounge

By Joel Wittnebel/The Oshawa Express

Cannabis lounges in Oshawa? Think again.

City council has made its stance clear following a recent city report, which detailed the city’s position that they do not support “permitted licensed and regulated cannabis consumption lounges at this time.”

“The legalization of cannabis is in its infancy and it will take a number of years of post-legalization experience to determine the effects of legalization on communities,” a city report reads. “Any consideration of licensed and regulated cannabis consumption lounges/venues should be deferred until the impacts of legalization are better understood.”

However, one frustrated advocate is crying foul, noting that once again, the City of Oshawa is taking a stance that pushes back against the clear agenda of the federal government for the legalization of marijuana.

“A lot of the work that I’ve done on the advocacy level has always been met with opposition,” says Marko Invancicivec, the owner of Green Valley Wellness in Whitby. “It’s crazy to see that here we are years later and they’re still taking a very hard line stance against a federal government who is obviously pushing through legalization.”

Ivancicivec’s business is one that assists medical marijuana patients, consulting them on licensing and products, as well as educating the public. He says that such a stance as Oshawa’s is worrying for business owners. In particular, he points to the city’s belief that municipalities should be provided with a two-year grace period to sort out zoning, public consultation and the appeal process.

“It’s sad to see the City of Oshawa take a very, very regressive step back, rather than welcoming it,” he says. “I’d like to see something a little bit more progressive from the City of Oshawa on this, because certainly at the end of the day, when you look at that requirement of two-years to be able to get their ducks in a row, it’s something that could take them as little as two to three months.”

However, for Mayor John Henry, there are a number of concerns when it comes to permitting licensed vapour lounges in the city.

“The challenge with vapour lounges is how they exhaust the air back into the community, that’s one of the issues, and we have concerns because it’s not just about business, but that business shouldn’t infringe on the rights of the people that live around (it),” he says. “We’re really concerned about the implications of this.”

Along with that, he points to the lack of involvement from the other levels of government.

“It would be nice to have some leadership from both the province and the federal government because they set the rules,” he says.