Retail cannabis stores in Burlington
Ontario laws are in place regarding how, where and who can buy and possess cannabis in the province. Visit ontario.ca/cannabis for information. Burlington has a set of municipal cannabis retail store guidelines about the preferred location of potential cannabis stores in our city.
The provincial government gave municipalities in Ontario a one-time offer to opt out of having cannabis stores in their communities. The deadline for municipalities to make this decision was Jan. 22, 2019.
On Monday, Jan. 14, 2019, at a Special Meeting of Council, Burlington City Council voted to allow the operation of retail cannabis stores in Burlington. Council also voted in favour of creating a citizen task force with terms of reference that include bylaw recommendations and the creation of guidelines for future retail cannabis stores.
The vote to allow retail cannabis stores in Burlington means that bricks and mortar stores with an approved license from the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO), are permitted to sell recreational cannabis in Burlington as of April 1, 2019. The AGCO is responsible for giving out retail licenses for cannabis stores in Ontario. To conduct a search to see the current retail cannabis stores in Burlington, please go to AGCO Licences and search for Cannabis Retail Store Authorization (type) in Burlington (address).
Cannabis production in Burlington
The Cannabis Act, 2018 became law on Oct. 17, 2018, creating a new policy framework for controlling the production of cannabis for medical and recreational use in Canada. The City’s current policies cover cannabis production for medical use only, based on legislation that was in place before the Cannabis Act.
To align with the new federal policies, City Council passed a staff direction to “Direct the Director of City Building to undertake a zoning study, including public consultation, for the production of recreational cannabis land use” on Dec. 17, 2018.
To guide the study, staff developed a two-stage work plan:
- Stage One - initial background research and preliminary public engagement; and
- Stage Two - further research, policy development and formal public engagement.
Stage One was completed and the findings were summarized in staff report PB 68-19: Cannabis Production Study – Stage 2 Work Plan, which provided recommendations to Council for Stage Two of the work plan. Council passed a staff direction to “Direct the Director of City Building to proceed with the “Stage Two” work plan of the Cannabis Production Study, as outlined in department of city building report PB-68-19” on Nov. 5, 2019.
Stage Two consisted of more study to develop and refine the preliminary recommendations, including formal internal and external engagement. On Nov. 16, 2021, a Statutory Public Meeting was held regarding a draft Zoning By-law Amendment to carry out the findings of the Cannabis Production Study, as outlined in staff report PL-06-21: Cannabis Production Study. At this meeting, Council passed a staff direction to “Receive and file community planning department report PL-06-21 regarding the Cannabis Production Study; and Direct the Director of Community Planning to report back to the Community Planning, Regulation and Mobility Committee in Q1 of 2022 with final recommendations.”
Based on the public comments received, the proposed Zoning By-law Amendment has been revised to prohibit outdoor cannabis production beside schools and day care centres.
Read the Proposed Zoning By-law Amendment
To learn more, including how to obtain the staff report, delegate at the meeting, submit written comments or connect with staff, please see the statutory notice.
Cannabis and police
The Halton Regional Police Service has been working diligently, both internally and with Burlington and its other local government partners to get ready for the legalization of cannabis. The police’s role will continue to include applying and enforcing applicable laws.
The Halton Regional Police Service has issued a news release:
Police have put information together to answer questions people might ask, including about:
- Drug-impaired driving
- Amendments to the Criminal Code
Visit the HRPS cannabis website for more information at haltonpolice.ca and get information from the frequently asked questions.