On the evening of December 15, Niverville’s town council approved a variance request and conditional use application submitted by Urban Flavours, a group of cannabis entrepreneurs who seek to open a cannabis store in Niverville.
This variation will allow a retail cannabis store to develop at 41 Main Street, reducing the buffer zone requirement from within 1,000 feet of a school to within 744 feet of a school. That location is currently under construction, so the store would, at the earliest, open some time in 2021.
Throughout the three-hour meeting, high levels of both support and opposition were read into the record from virtual attendees and written responses received by the town.
At one point, more than 30 attendees were logged in to view the virtual meeting. Ultimately, there were 56 publicly registered comments in favour of the Urban Flavours proposal, and 27 publicly registered comments against it.
From those in opposition to the measure, the obvious concern revolved having an adult-only business like a cannabis store in relatively close proximity to both an elementary school and daycare.
Other concerns included public safety and a possible increase in crime, as well as parking issues.
Urban Flavours used the meeting and the large audience as an opportunity to introduce themselves to the community. They also explained their variance request, saying that the reason they were interested in the location is because there are limited options for commercial development in town that fall outside the 1,000-foot buffer zone.
They also outlined the ways in which they are proactively targeting concerns from the community.
What Is Urban Flavours?
Urban Flavours was created by Harsimran (Sim) Sandhu, along with his partners Harvinder Dhillon and Said Mohamed. The three businessmen were all raised in Manitoba.
“We are excited to be doing business in Niverville,” said Sandhu. “We have various businesses in Winnipeg, such as gas stations, real estate development, and car washes. Our roots are in Manitoba and we look forward to doing more business in the community. We’ve been looking at Niverville for business purposes for the last two years. We know Niverville is a growing community. It’s a good place to do business… we love the community aspect of it and how everybody’s coming together.”
Sandhu said they have a combined total of 10 years of business experience between the three partners, with three of those years related to the cannabis industry.
The Liquor, Gaming, and Cannabis Authority (LGCA) oversees the sale of cannabis in Manitoba and Sandhu explained where they are at in the process of securing a license.
“It’s a very long and detailed process with them and we’ve submitted our application to the LGCA, and approval of the space is one of the main things we have to get passed now,” said Sandhu. “So in detail, when it comes to security and how the cannabis is stored, all those things are very regulated. We’re doing the minimum as far as what is required by the LGCA, but we’re also going to go a little bit beyond that just due to the sensitivity of the build in Niverville. We understand that this is a first for the community, and we want to say that, from a security standpoint, we’re not leaving any stones unturned.”
Urban Flavours expects to sell similar cannabis products to other stores of this type across the province, including cannabis-infused food products. The group also says they plan to employ locals and assist with job creation in the community.
“This is our first retail site, and at least for right now, this is the only cannabis store we are planning on doing,” Sandhu added. “We’re not planning on opening up in Winnipeg or other communities in the province. Down the road, that might change, but as we’re sitting here today, we’re not planning on any other stores. We’re also not a franchise. Nobody is controlling us. We want to work with the town council, with the developer, with the residents of the community, and take all the suggestions that we can possibly take and make this a good business that’s well supported throughout the community.”
Support for the Proposal
Many residents made personal statements of support, such as Barry Piasta, a local community advocate.
“I can’t see any difficulty with a few hundred feet, so I’m all for this,” said Piasta. “It’s 2020 now and I think everybody realizes that this is a less harmful product than once thought. And if they provide local employment… it would be nice to see actual Nivervillians employed there.”
One group of supportive residents supplied a form letter, signed by many people who live in Niverville, along with comments from parents who aren’t concerned about their children being exposed to a cannabis retailer.
“I have no worries or concerns for [my children] when they walk past the liquor department at Bigway, nor when they see the sale of tobacco that can be purchased there and at the local gas stations,” said Nicole Savard, the mother of two teenagers. “Likewise, I would have no worries or concerns for them if they were to walk, bike, or ride past the cannabis retailer. I trust that council will make the progressive-minded decision.”
Leslie Bardal, a local teacher and mother of two children, also wrote in support of the new venture.
“If my children can walk by or right up to a display of alcohol right next to the fruit section in our local grocery store, they can walk by a store selling it and other legal product for adult consumption,” Bardal said. “I believe our town council and Chamber of Commerce has our town safety and integrity in our best interest while they work to build our commercial tax base and welcome all new businesses.”
Angelique Forest uses cannabis for medicinal purposes and felt that the November 2019 plebiscite itself was harmful to those who require access to cannabis for health reasons. She says the plebiscite stoked tensions and defamed people like her.
Bryan Trottier owns a piece of property in town that was previously considered by Canna Cabana when their application to develop in town ultimately failed.
“After the plebiscite, I believe the town has spoken clearly that this business is welcome in Niverville,” he said. “The proposed location is an excellent choice for both the company wanting to come to Niverville and the citizens that will be using the store. As with any other store selling 18-plus-aged items, these stores are regulated by a government body and do not require the Town of Niverville to add more regulations to limit the chances of a private business’s success. Having been denied as the owner of the original location, I am disappointed that this decision wasn’t granted last year, but I welcome the addition of this new business to our town in the new location.”
Resident Concerns
As expected, the primary objection was the location’s proximity to Niverville Elementary School to the east and the Growing Minds daycare to the west.
“Cannabis is more dangerous for youth. We need to take extra efforts to protect them,” said local resident Dwight Doell, who presented statistics from Health Canada. “Growing Minds is even closer to this location than the elementary school. The daycare has school-age children, not just infants. There’s a traffic pattern there when the kids are being walked back and forth to the daycare centre and the school.”
Troy Waldner owns the property on Main Street immediately adjacent to the new store. He has been a resident of Niverville for 43 years and knows the business community.
“I’m looking forward to a [new] place there, but being so close and right in downtown Niverville is probably just not the place,” said Waldner. “I know the landlord and he has other options. This is probably not the best option.”
Rod Downey believes the 1,000-foot rule should have been upheld, especially considering it is the buffer zone recommended by the province.
“In the research I did, through the province, that was based on research on other municipalities across Canada, and this was based on the early days of medical marijuana locations,” said Downey. “They [Urban Flavours] really need to be able to prove why the variance is justified, and on the face of the application, I can’t see that evidence.”
Patricia Dutchak, who is new to Niverville, believes the precedent is about more than a proximity to the schools; it’s about the image of the town.
“I do object to the variance,” Dutchak said. “I’m relatively new to Niverville and I’m really impressed with the town. It’s very progressive. [People] perceive it as a good place to raise children. And I’m really afraid that having an adult-only business in that location will really compromise the town.”
Other people were concerned that this store will negatively impact the ongoing efforts to revitalize Main Street.
“This is something new and something we shouldn’t rush into,” said Norman Klippenstein. “I am in opposition to the variance because of the limited distance to the school. Bylaws were put in place for a reason and I don’t see why we’re in any rush.”
Some parents expressed that they don’t want to see gummy or candy lookalike edibles sold in town.
Responding to Concerns
Urban Flavours presented several points regarding people’s concern over children viewing the store.
“The name is discreet,” said Sandhu. “The name is Urban Flavours, so the signage and any branding on the outside of the building will not include the world cannabis or any cannabis graphics or anything like that. That is something we feel is necessary.”
He also reminded people that the windows will be opaque so that passersby can’t see into the store. This is an LGCA regulation for all cannabis shops in Manitoba.
Sandhu said that residents inquiring about local employment have already contacted them. He added that they also intend to be a supportive and active member of the community, in terms of supporting local events and sports teams, something they currently do with their other businesses.
Sandhu also elaborated about their plans for store security and how products will be stored and handled, in compliance with LGCA rules. In consultation with the RCMP, Urban Flavours has agreed to install high-quality video cameras for use in solving potential break-and-enter crimes.
“It will be a good system, something that will be able to read license plates,” said Sandhu. “We are taking it to the extreme when it comes to security cameras.”
However, Sandhu made the point that any criminals who break into the store would have a very difficult time accessing actual products, which will be stored inside a secure vault—another LGCA rule. He doesn’t believe any successful cannabis thefts from retail stores have happened in the province since cannabis was legalized.
He also addressed the question of edibles.
“Edibles are being sold in retail sites right now, but we haven’t determined what type of edibles we would be carrying yet, to be honest,” said Sandhu. “Everything being sold will not be sold to anyone underage. Everything is kept behind the counter. If it comes down to us not selling candy-looking edibles, it’s definitely something we are open to.”
The Developer
Dowse Ventures, one of the owners of 41 Main Street, spoke in favour of the incoming business.
“We did spend some time with the applicant looking at various locations within the community, and this one was deemed to be a location that would be viable for retail,” said Ray Dowse.
Dowse emphasized that cannabis retail is highly regulated in Manitoba, and he feels the business will be a good fit for Niverville. From a developer’s standpoint, since he is currently preparing this location for a new commercial strip mall, he said he has already addressed issues related to parking, for example. He pointed out that no surrounding businesses registered any objections along these lines when the development went through its own public hearing.
Council Reactions
Throughout the lengthy meeting, members of council engaged with the concerns raised by residents.
Mayor Myron Dyck reflected on the complexity of the issue. “At the end of the day, on any decision council makes, you have to weigh what is before you. Why this business in this location? It is a process we go through. We had a request, the process says what we must do, and we must have a public hearing and that is what we are obligated to do, and we would do the same for any business and follow the same process.”
Councillor Nathan Dueck provided a brief commentary on cannabis-related crimes and says that a case can be made that illegal cannabis sales have ties to organized crime, a problem which the federally regulated system in Canada works to prevent.
“Cannabis is important to have in the community to continue to make sure that specific sources of organized crime are removed from the community,” said Councillor Dueck. “Any time you buy cannabis on the street… it is being funnelled through organized crime. One of the benefits of this is it’s going toward a monitored source scenario at that point.”
Dueck said that he and Mayor Dyck have attended a Drug Abuse Resistance Education (DARE) program, held out of Steinbach.
“They’ve been asking to come to our community,” Dueck said. “We’ve attended a few meetings at this point. I also think this would be a really good point to introduce DARE to the community and I would also ask the applicant to maybe consider getting involved.”
Mayor Dyck added that town safety is a high priority: “Council is looking into creating a larger police presence within the community. It is definitely on our agenda to increase our police presence.”
One member of council who voiced significant opposition to the proposal was Councillor John Funk. Funk reflected on the history of Niverville’s councils disagreeing with the province, often taking the position that provincial safety standards weren’t strong enough.
Funk gave the example of speed limits for drivers coming into town, saying that the province’s safety review sets them too high. He then questioned why the town would consider lowering the buffer zone, which in his view contradicts the town’s commitment to public safety.
“The province says 1,000 feet would be what we should be from the school, and lo and behold, the first thing we want to do is take safety out of there,” Funk argued. “I don’t think it should fall anywhere on Main Street between the tracks and Fifth… The safety standards are there for a reason.”
Funk went on to say that some residents who voted in favour of cannabis retail during the plebiscite, assuming there would be a 1,000-foot buffer zone, might have instead voted no if they knew that the buffer zone would soon be lowered.
In fact, Funk went as far as to imply such residents could consider taking legal action against the town.
“When we had the plebiscite, we said 1,000 feet… So is there legal action here?” Funk said. “Within one year, we want to break our own bylaw, just to have a store on Main Street.”
When Councillor Dueck called for a motion to approve the variance, bringing the matter to a vote, Councillor Kevin Stott suggested further amending the motion to lower the buffer zone to 400 feet—to prevent having to go through variance request hearings for these types of businesses in the future.
“I heard all the arguments and I don’t like shoving it off to the backside of town or the industrial park,” Stott said. “I do think that having it front and centre, in a public area, where it is viewed and watched, they are going to supply more security, and that is why I would push that then—and because the plebiscite said they wanted it in town. If a block is 400 feet, that’s what I would like to see.”
But the town’s CAO, Eric King, pointed out that the suggestion to lessen the official buffer zone to 400 feet would have to be handled through a separate bylaw and couldn’t be voted on that evening.
Before the vote, Councillor Dueck made a few closing remarks.
“When I was elected to this role, the citizens in the chamber highly prioritized revitalizing Main Street,” Dueck said. “Every single business that could have a cannabis business in it has been approached. Anywhere that a building is going to go is going to have to have this type of hearing. We’re in a lose-lose type of situation on this—and because of the location of the school, it causes a very big problem. However, we do have an obligation to the plebiscite to find a space for [a cannabis retailer]. And therefore I believe this is probably one of the best options and solutions that we can deal with at this point.”
Outcome of the Vote
The application was ultimately approved by a vote of 3–1, with only Councillor Funk voting against it.
The conditional use permit was also approved, with a few conditions: the installation of one-way windows, no cannabis advertising or signs on the exterior, shop admittance restricted to age 19 or older, adequate lighting, and an effort to mitigate parking concerns, such as utilizing the building’s rear parking lot.
“We heard repeatedly from members from council as to the research that they’ve done,” said Mayor Dyck. “Members of council have been very diligent in doing their own homework, and I think the residents of Niverville need to know that. There’s been a lot of time and energy invested by council to learn about this industry and learn about the legalities of it and then put that information to work to make sense of what would be the best decision to make here… To be frank, it was not one of the easier decisions, but it was an educated and heartfelt one.”
