UPDATE: Alberta Gaming, Liquor and Cannabis says it has issued interim cannabis licences to 17 Alberta retailers so they can open on October 17th. None are in Grande Prairie.
Canada is two weeks away from legalization but it’s still unclear whether any cannabis retail stores will be open in Grande Prairie by then. Currently, there are 20 proposed stores in various stages of the development process.
Three of those have had to come before a city committee to have their locations approved because they are in Local Commercial Districts. One of those stores is URBN Leaf Cannabis Company.
Its location on the east side of the city was approved during a Tuesday morning meeting. Managing Partner Craig Ruether says he’s happy about the decision.
“I’m excited for our opportunity and excited to see the other businesses in town where they open. It should be a good time going forward for everyone I think.”
Even though Ruether’s store location was approved, he still has to go through a 21-day appeal process. During that time, people can file paperwork to try to and convince the committee to rethink its decision on the approved location.
After the appeal period is over, Ruether will still have to apply for a building permit before work can start. At this point, he says there’s no way he will be able to open by the October 17th.
“After that’s done, then we can proceed with development and hopefully have that store open as soon as we can… We definitely won’t be making the 17th… but definitely before the end of November.”
The public has until October 28th to file an appeal with the city about Ruether’s location. Cannabis becomes legal in Canada on October 17.
