Hello Ward 8 Neighbours,
As you know, the Ward 8 Office works to continuously update residents about proposed cannabis locations, and the impact that they may potentially have on surrounding neighbourhoods; especially when they are within distance of schools, parks or community centres.
Recently, Council received an update on the status of applications for cannabis retail stores in Hamilton as well as questions asked by members of Council about the review process for applications. The Ward 8 Office thought it would be helpful for residents to understand the process of the AGCO process and provide answers to frequently asked questions.
For more details, please continue reading below…
As background, in 2019, the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario(AGCO) was given regulatory authority to allow for open market applications for cannabis retail stores.
In January 2020, cannabis retail store applications were no longer awarded via a lottery process, and instead potential applicants provided intent directly to the AGCO for consideration. Between January 2020 until February 5, 2021, the City of Hamilton has received 103 notifications of intent for cannabis retail stores from the AGCO, including 11 involving Ward 8.
The AGCO advises the City of an application for a proposed cannabis retail store
intending to operate in the City. Within 15 days, the City is responsible for reviewing each application and providing comments to the AGCO. This requires the City’s Cannabis Enforcement Team to rely on Council’s Cannabis Policy Statement to canvass the surrounding neighborhood at the 300m mark and
create the necessary heat maps and radial separation assessment(s) taking into
account schools, parks, day cares, libraries, community centres, addiction and health centres and other cannabis stores.
Once the appropriate information is gathered, it’s circulated to the appropriate internal parties, including the Building Department, Public Health, Public Works, Zoning, Parking, Hamilton Police, Hamilton Fire and the Ward Councillor and is used to formalize a response back to the AGCO.
A Registrar at the AGCO reviews the City’s response prior to issuing a decision to the applicant. There is no public meeting or opportunity for an appeal hearing.
After approval, the City’s response is forwarded to the applicant. The applicant then has an opportunity to reply to the concerns brought forth and provide action plans or responses to them.
The City has received 103 notifications of intent to open cannabis retail stores. The City has provided comments of: no objection for 58 notifications; objection for 29 notifications, and 16 notifications are still pending and close for comment at different times during the month. To date, none of the objections put forth by the City have resulted in the AGCO declining those applications, including objections about locations being within distance of schols, parks or community centres or “clustering” of stores, as we could potentially see on Upper James St.
In September 2020, in response to a Motion of Council, Licensing and By-law Services drafted a memo to the Ministry of Attorney General and local Members of Parliament requesting that the Province consider amending the application process, to consider radial separation from other cannabis locations as another factor of public interest.
In early October 2020, the City received comment back from the Ministry of Attorney General that they would – “continue to monitor the evolution of cannabis legalization in the province and its impact on our communities”.
In addition to the information above, the City has put together an in-depth web page on Cannabis information, which you may find useful. You can access that page here.
Questions or Concerns?
If you have any questions or concerns, please contact our office here.