WEDNESDAY, 12 MARCH 2014 02:00 RON SEYMOUR Kelowna daily Courier
An industrial building in West Kelowna could become the site of a large-scale medicinal marijuana-growing business. Owner Trent Kitsch asked Tuesday for West Kelowna council to endorse his plans to develop the property at 2322 Dominion Rd. for commercial pot-production under new Health Canada rules that take effect April 1. As well as helping to meet the demands of Canadians licensed to use marijuana for medicinal purposes, Kitsch said the venture could have a significant economic impact locally with dozens of new jobs and taxation revenue. "I think this is a perfect example (of) economic development," Kitsch told West Kelowna councillors. "It's often misconstrued as an illegal or shady business." Council was holding a public hearing on where medicinal pot-growing ventures could be set up in the municipality. Aside from another man who said medicinal pot-producers should not be allowed in residential areas, Kitsch was the only person to address council at the public hearing. Staff's proposal, following the lead of the B.C. cities,including Kelowna, was to restrict such businesses to an industrial zone, keeping them out of areas with residential or agricultural classifications. After a brief discussion, council voted 6-1 in favour of the recommendation. Coun. Rick De Jong dissented, saying medicinal grow-ops should also be allowed on agricultural land. The Dominion Road property owned by Kitsch has previously been used for the growing of medicinal marijuana under Health Canada's current regulations, which expire on March 31. Kitsch said the venture had a good working relationship with local authorities such as the municipality, West Kelowna Fire Rescue and the RCMP. Given the track record, he said, it makes sense to take the operation to a larger-scale under the new commercial growers-only regime being introduced by Health Canada. If the venture is licensed for medicinal marijuana production by the federal agency, Kitsch said he and the other building owners would make sure the structure complies with stringent standards relating to on-site security. "If anybody tried to break into it, we'd know in about three seconds," Kitsch said after the meeting. "And the police would know three seconds after that." The new Health Canada rules require the approximately 35,000 Canadians with licences to use marijuana to obtain their supply only via the mail from one of the new large-scale commercial growers. As of late-February, however, Health Canada had only approved only eight applications for commercial pot growers across the country, raising some concerns about whether supply will match demand. The City of Kelowna will hold a public hearing next Tuesday to decide where such ventures will be allowed inside the municipality. Councillors have already given preliminary endorsement to a staff recommendation they be restricted to an industrial area.
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List of Authorised Licensed Producers under the Marihuana for Medical Purposes Regulations
Frequently Asked Questions At Health Canada Website:
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