MINTO – Council here has passed a resolution to allow the retail sale of cannabis in the municipality.
The decision came in a 4-3 recorded vote at the Jan. 22 council meeting.
Mayor George Bridge, deputy mayor Dave Turton and councillors Ron Elliott and Geoff Gunson voted in favour of allowing cannabis sales, while councillors Jean Anderson, Judy Dirksen and Mark MacKenzie were opposed.
The recorded vote, requested by Turton, was called by Bridge following presentation of a staff report by clerk’s assistant Quinn Foerter.
In her report, Foerter noted Minto won’t be getting a cannabis store anytime soon regardless of council’s decision, as the province is initially issuing just 25 licenses for retail stores, which must be located in municipalities with populations over 50,000.
The report also indicated 205 local residents weighed in on the issue in an online survey through the town’s Bang the Table civic engagement platform, with 136 (66.3%) in favor, 67 (32.7%) opposed and two (1%) undecided.
A petition opposing local cannabis sales was received at the municipal office on Jan. 16. It contained 143 signatures, but 13 were from non-residents of Minto.
“Petitions like this one are difficult to quantify statistically, because there is no direct relationship between the signatures contained on the page, and the number of people who were approached to sign it,” the report notes.
“It is also possible that a number of people who signed the petition had already voted online,
which would also skew the results.”
The report also summarized comments from a Jan. 8 public meeting in Harriston on the issue, at which council heard from presenters on both sides of the argument.
Of municipalities sharing borders with Minto, only Mapleton elected to opt out, Foerter noted in her report.
The report pointed out a decision to opt out would impact the ability of the municipality to access provincial allocations of cannabis revenue “to offset the costs related to recreational cannabis retail sales,” including the increased cost of bylaw enforcement.
“At this point, it is not known what the cost increase to municipalities related to the legalization of cannabis and possible share of recreational cannabis’ federal excise will be,” the report states.
Turton noted a great deal of discussion has been generated on the issue.
“I’ve been a councillor for 15 years and I don’t believe I’ve ever talked to as many people on one particular issue as I have on the cannabis issue,” he said, noting the public meeting also provided a great deal of information and input.
“This is one of the ones that I’ve really done my homework on and I’m convinced that I’m going to vote the right way,” he stated.
Councillor Jean Anderson said the issue has been a compelling one, with a lot of viewpoints expressed.
“I certainly have thought more about this one than practically anything I’ve come across in four years of council. It far surpasses the chicken coops and the sale of water,” she said, referencing debates on allowing chicken coops in urban areas and regulation of bulk water sales from municipal systems.
“I am somewhat conflicted. There’s pros and cons.”
Anderson added, “I think some people are misunderstanding what we’re doing here tonight. Some people are just dead set against the legalization of marijuana. That ship has sailed. Mr. Trudeau has brought that forward and we’re here. It’s the new reality. It’s the new way of living for some of us and we’re going to take some time to wrap our minds around it.”
Anderson said others seemed to think the issue was connected to the sale of medical marijuana – “And it’s not. You’re not going to be able to purchase that at those retail shops”
She also noted the town has already agreed to permit a facility for the production of medical cannabis within its borders.
“Medicinal marijuana has some tremendous benefit for some people who don’t get pain relief anywhere else,” said Anderson, who added the need for chronic pain relief was “the primary cause of our opioid crisis.
“Opioids are a problem and they’ve been prescribed by the medical professionals for years and years and years. Cannabis is a realistic option for some other people in a non-addictive medication.”
While she said “I don’t think we’re finished with it yet,” Anderson stated, “I don’t think in reality we’re going to see a retail store in our town limits for quite some time because of our size.”
Councillor Judy Dirksen said the issue “received an incredible amount of very passionate advice from both sides.”
She added, “My biggest challenge is, frankly I can see the logic on both sides … but I have made a decision.”
Dirkson stated, “Cannabis is legal in Canada and we can’t change that. But just because it’s legal doesn’t mean it’s good. So I urge everyone, please be careful.”
Councillor Ron Elliot said he “did my own little survey” and talked to local residents of various ages and backgrounds.
“Some of the people I talked to had no interest in it until I talked to them about it,” he pointed out. “I’ve changed my mind, yes, no, no, yes,” Elliot said, noting, “Information was good on negative, good on positive.”
Councillor Geoff Gunson said he too has gone back and forth on the issue.
“I’ve got points yes. I’ve got points no. I’ve got points that it doesn’t’ matter,” he stated.
Noting he’s “talked to a lot of people, Gunson said, “A lot of people really didn’t care … I had yeses and I had no’s but a bulk of them really didn’t care.”
Gunson said he believes future enforcement of regulations surrounding cannabis will be more important than where stores are located.
“Whether we have a store or not it’s going to come to Minto somehow. Our concern isn’t about a store, it’s about how were going to enforce it down the road.”
Councillor Mark MacKenzie said, “The vote, to me, is nothing to do with the pot shops, nothing to do with medical marijuana. The vote to me is about funding.
“That $30 million they’re going to split ended up to be $2 per head in our municipality because its per capita,” he said. “It’s not a lot of money. It’s some … and we’re limited to where we can spend it.”
MacKenzie also predicted “Pot shops are not going to happen here. Not in this term anyway.”
Bridge said, “We waited until the last minute so we’ve got to get this done by midnight or it isn’t going to matter what we say.”
He noted council waited until the deadline to make the decision in order to be able to base it on all available information.
While noting he has concerns about legalized cannabis and its impact on youth, Bridge said he wanted to ensure the town gets its share of any future funding, which he said can be put toward projects like community mental health initiatives.
“I believe we could use it toward that kind of thing, education and all that, and our youth are the ones that I’m really worried about,” the mayor stated.
“I think the issue today isn’t about whether you believe marijuana should be illegal or not, it’s about whether we want to continue on with the funding.”
County decisions
Minto’s decision means four of Wellington County’s seven municipalities have opted in to cannabis sales: Minto, Wellington North, Puslinch and Guelph-Eramosa.
Centre Wellington, Erin and Mapleton have opted out of pot stores.
