THUNDER BAY -- The city's first legal pot shop is proposed to be on the south side.
The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario on Wednesday announced the results of its second lottery to select applicants for a cannabis storefront licences. The province required that of the 42 new retail locations to be approved, one each be located in Thunder Bay, Kenora, Sault Ste. Marie, Timmins and North Bay.
The Thunder Bay application was awarded to Gerald Harrison, with the proposed store to be located at 1802 Victoria Avenue East at the corner of Waterloo Street.
Successful applicants have until Aug. 28 to apply for their licence, with the Alcohol and Gaming Commission conducting an eligibility review. If approval is given, there would then be a 15-day window for the public and municipality to provide a response before authorization could be given for the store to open.
The Alcohol and Gaming Commission received 217 applications to open a private retail outlet in Thunder Bay, the most of any of the five northern cities promised to receive a location, though a significant number were determined to be ineligible.
Thunder Bay city council earlier this month approved a policy recommending that storefronts be located at least 150 metres away from identified sensitive use areas, which included recreational facilities, community centres and parks. The International Friendship Gardens is directly across the intersection.
The selected applicant in Kenora was Carl Ignatius, with the proposed storefront at 420 Second Street South.
