Nelson City Council has officially passed its new regulations around recreational cannabis. The City held a public hearing on Monday with only two people in attendance. One had a question about whether a medical cannabis consultation business could exist in Nelson after legalization.
Mayor Deb Kozak says there doesn’t seem to any problems with that.
The new zoning regulations allow for a maximum of five retail cannabis stores across different areas. For example, there’s only two allowed in the downtown and one in Railtown. They must also be 150 metres from schools and other facilities for families and children. Exceptions have been made in some cases as it’s not geographically possible to have that separation distance in all areas.
Mayor Kozak was happy to see the process finalized.
Council also passed a matrix system which will score the applications to help determine who receives one of the five licenses. Councillor Micheal Dailly was opposed to the system.
The City will weigh the applicant’s qualifications and business experience as well as the location, security plan, and any interior improvements.
Interested businesses must first apply to the province – that process began on August 10.