Mississauga Becomes the Latest Community to Shun Ontario Cannabis Retail

It appears Ontario communities will not be working in unitary fashion when retail cannabis stores go live starting April 1, 2019. One of Ontario’s largest cities has opted-out of allowing private retail shops to sell cannabis in Mississauga. Residents must venture outside city bounds or purchase online to secure cannabis supplies.

The decision was put to vote at City Council headquarters in central Mississauga today. Council voted 10-2 on the motion to opt-out of allowing retail cannabis stores to set up shop, with councillors Karen Ras and Sue McFadden voting against the motion. Privately-owned locations would have been licensed by the Alcohol and Gaming Commission, but this point is now moot. One councillor who voted against the motion described the legislation as, “flawed, and needs to be revised.” Perhaps that was the overarching sentiment in the room, judging by the near-unanimous nature of the vote.

If you live in Missisauga you will not be getting retail cannabis stores. City has opted out and will now be a “Dry Community” https://t.co/F27hyWHPZ3

— Roderick C Elliot (@notorious_ROD) December 12, 2018

Mississauga had to make a decision by the provincially-mandated deadline of Jan. 22, 2019.

Although Mississauga cannabis retailing will not proceed forward initially, the door remains ajar. Councillors discussed the possibility of taking a wait-and-see approach, based on the effects retail stores have on surrounding municipalities over the next few months—and then re-assess. Right now, the motion rejection appears to be about being rushed into making a decision without any control or planning.

With that, Mississauga becomes Ontario’s largest community to reject participation in cannabis retail deployment. They join Markham and Richmond Hill as two other prominent Greater Toronto Area (GTA) municipalities to break ranks from the program. Both cities combined for approximately 525,000 in-territory residents according to 2016 census data, while Mississauga alone has around 721,000 residents.

A poll by Forum Research of 500 residents showed that 53 per cent of  those residents indicated they disapproved of legalization of recreational cannabis and 47 per cent approved. It appears that, for now, the slim majority will get their way.

Original article: Mississauga Becomes the Latest Community to Shun Ontario Cannabis Retail

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