Council elects to treat public-use marijuana same as tobacco

By Collin Gallant on August 21, 2018.

cgallant@medicinehatnews.com @CollinGallant

City council has ruled that marijuana should be treated like smoking tobacco, as far as public use is concerned, when the drug is legalized for adult use this fall, but have resisted suggestion that tobacco should be further restricted.

The issue was debated at length at Monday’s meeting when city staff requested some direction about drafting rules for cannabis use.

The initial suggestion was simply to add cannabis to an existing raft of rules about smoking tobacco, which makes it an offence to smoke cigarettes, cigars or traditional pipes in most public buildings, playgrounds or within five metres of a doorway. As well, vapourizers and e-cigarettes would be added.

To that however, council could have endorsed banning both substances at campgrounds, and public services committee chair Coun. Julie Friesen asked colleagues opinions about sidewalks in general.

“We’re going to be challenged at some time to ban tobacco on sidewalks, so why not have that discussion,” she asked.

RELATED: Retail pot could burst on scene

Council members stood against a wider prohibition on tobacco use, and endorsed removing the prohibition at campgrounds, suggested by Couns. Darren Hirsch and Phil Turnbull.

“I’m disappointed that it’s being lumped in together,” said Hirsch. “I’m not a smoker but there is probably some who are tearing their hair out that they’re getting hammered again. And for a legal substance.

“Who recently has heard complaints about smoking (tobacco)? Nobody.”

Other council members said that for clarity sake and ease of enforcement, to consider the two together was a matter of practicality.

“We’ve got to be consistent and simple — a no-smoking sign is a no-smoking sign. Period,” said Turnbull.

Coun. Jamie McIntosh said council should not take the opportunity to add rules when cannabis becomes legal in mid-October.

“I’ve been proud of the city for trying not to be a nanny state in this (legalization) process,” said Coun. Jamie McIntosh. “We can’t be overprotective of the community when the community should have a say in it.”

Brian Varga said private campground operators have to be taken into account.

“I think we’d be opening a can of worms, and who’s going to enforce it? The police aren’t going to be driving down the road handing out tickets.”

Since the early 2000s, city council has enacted several bylaws to restrict tobacco smoking, including barring cigarettes and cigars in bars, restaurants and other workplaces. More recent legislation restricted smoking in public spaces where children were likely to gather, such as parks,

On Monday, Coun. Robert Dumanowski said the city was “a leader” in reducing areas where smoking could take place, and those were “tough considerations.”

“They weren’t popular, and looking back we don’t even question it,” he said. “There was very little resistance.

“Smoking isn’t illegal and we have to respect that. I do support it as is, but in the future we’ll have to watch. My sense is the public responds differently to someone smoking (tobacco) and weed.”

Separately, council endorsed a plan to set business licence fees for the new enterprises at $1,000. Council passed all three readings on Monday after Turnbull made a suggestion that provincial fees, amounting to $4,500 in the first year, then $700 afterwards, were high enough. He suggested lowering the renewal fee.

Chief administrator Merete Heggelund said the $1,000 fee was an early estimate of how much it would cost the city in time and resources to issue and recertify the licences, not recover general costs of writing bylaws and studying the issues.

All fees are set to be re-examined and updated over the next two years, she added.

In related cannabis news, a set of nine applications for development permits to transform commercial properties into cannabis retail stores will be heard at Wednesday’s meeting of the municipal planning commission.

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