ON: Short-Lived Uxbridge Marijuana Dispensary Shut Down

Katelyn Baker

Well-Known Member
UXBRIDGE – The Weeds My Biz marijuana dispensary didn't see much business during its short-lived opening in downtown Uxbridge.

The dispensary opened for business briefly Feb. 24 in a storefront on the corner of Toronto and Main streets, but was quickly closed when an employee received notice from the police that the business was operating illegally.

"It's illegal to sell marijuana from a storefront," said Staff-Sergeant Cyril Gillis, patrol services leader for North Durham's 15 division, noting police have dealt with similar operations elsewhere in the region, such as Oshawa, but this was the first in north Durham.

"Individuals may be thinking this is a grey area, but it's not a grey area from our perspective," he said, noting it is illegal to sell marijuana unless it is for medical purposes, and even then it is still illegal to operate a dispensary.

"I think there's been so much noise in the media about the Liberal government planning to legalize marijuana, and there's been discussions about that for the past year, so maybe people are trying to get ahead of the game in that sense, but it's still illegal. We don't even know what the potential legislation will be, it could be that it becomes legal but dispensaries are still not allowed. We don't know."

Coun. Fred Bryan, who reassured residents the business had been shut down at a Feb. 27 council meeting, said the township may look at putting bylaws in place to discourage sales if legalization is successful, but for now, are waiting to see what the legislation would look like.

"That's not the township we want by any stretch, where we have marijuana dispensaries operating in our downtown," he said.

"Technically that business wasn't breaking any bylaws, and we aren't looking at putting any new bylaws in place at this time. We're waiting to see what the Feds finally decide."

Staff-Sgt. Gillis said the police were able to react so quickly thanks to a tip from the public, and reminds residents that any storefront marijuana sales are illegal.

"We want to thank the public for bringing this to our attention," he said, noting the list of licensed sellers, which is available on the Health Canada website, is quite short, and does not allow for in-person sales.

"If you're going to sell it, the legislation says it can't be a storefront."

new-federal-laws-allow-limited-personal-pot-growing.jpg


News Moderator: Katelyn Baker 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Short-Lived Uxbridge Marijuana Dispensary Shut Down
Author: Moya Dillon
Contact: (905) 215-0472
Photo Credit: None Found
Website: Durham Region
 
Back
Top Bottom