By Nigel Maxwell

Local development

Proposed cannabis production facility leaves foul odour for neighbours

Mar 18, 2019 | 10:00 AM

Residents living in the area where a small cannabis production facility may be built are voicing their concerns.

Marcel Rabut lives next door to where the facility would be built in the Rural Municipality (RM) of Buckland and told paNOW he has many unanswered questions he needs answered, before he can make a decision on whether or not he is in favour of the proposal.

“I’m at the retirement age where maybe I would consider selling my place but if this drives the value of my place down, that concerns me,” he said.

Rabut said he also has concerns over whether the proposed production facility would attract crime. Those concerns are echoed by Taylor Lindgren, who lives about a mile west of the proposed site.

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“We’re a young family, we have a young daughter and plan on having more kids, we don’t want to raise them in an area next to a cannabis facility,” she said.

Jim Dawley also lives in the area of the proposed facility. He told paNOW he could not see anything positive come from the proposal, given the already high crime rate in the area. And he added he did not think there was any way to guarantee the facility would be 100 per cent secure.

“We are pro business but we are definitely concerned about the potential for an escalated crime rate in this particular situation,” he said.

At this stage, construction of the proposed micro-cultivation facility still hinges on the approval of Health Canada, which has very strict security guidelines that must be met before a license can be issued.

At their last meeting the R.M. of Buckland council approved a bylaw which allows cannabis facilities to be considered for development. Planning Manager Jason Kaptein told paNOW he had sent out a total of six letters to residents in the area regarding the proposed facility, including the applicant. He also confirmed four of the letters returned had raised concerns about property valuation and public safety.

“Truth be told, I have a feeling this matter will be re-voiced at the next council meeting,” he said, adding while the bylaw itself was final, discussion could include having a broader mail-out area.

The next meeting has been scheduled for April 8.

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nigel.maxwell@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @nigelmaxwell