Lynn Valley may soon be getting its first cannabis shop.
District of North Vancouver voted unanimously Monday to advance a proposal from Nimbus Cannabis to open a store on the back side of Lynn Valley Centre.
The proposal has the province’s approval and is in compliance with the district’s guidelines for where cannabis shops may be located.
The store itself will only be accessible from the exterior on the east side of the Lynn Valley Centre, not from inside the mall itself.
Almost 1,400 residents who live within 100 metres of the property received notices by mail about the application. Of the 64 who wrote to the district, 10 were in favour of Nimbus moving in while 54 wrote in opposition. Those who were opposed tended to focus on the potential for young people to be influenced by the presence of the cannabis store, concerns of crime and other nuisances.
Council showed little concern about the proposal, based on its merits.
Coun. Jim Hanson noted the Seymour, Lynn Creek and Lions Gate neighbourhoods all have had pot shops approved and that it made geographic sense for the Lynn Valley town centre to have one of its own.
“I am aware that there are some community members who oppose this rezoning and believe that a cannabis shop is not appropriate for this site and is not congruent with neighbourhood feel. I certainly respect those views, but given the legal status of recreational cannabis, I do not believe we can have a basis for discrimination against cannabis shops of this type,” he said.
Couns. Lisa Muri and Betty Forbes also said the district did a poor job of alerting residents to the potential change by only placing official public notice signs immediately outside the unit where the store would go and on Conifer Street, which connects the mall to Mountain Highway.
Council will hold a public hearing on the proposal, likely in early February, before having their final vote on the matter.
