By Lyonel Doherty
A medical cannabis grower hopes that Oliver Town council will have an open mind when it comes to accommodating dispensaries in the future.
That was Mark Conlin’s message as he promoted the Starbuds brand to council last week.
Conlin said he wasn’t trying to pitch anything to the Town, but acknowledged that many municipalities have been reluctant to allow medical marijuana dispensaries to open up in their midst.
Conlin stressed that the laws dealing with the legalization of recreational marijuana are not the same as the laws that govern medical cannabis.
He noted that legalization could still be two years away, yet the people who really need medical marijuana, such as cancer patients, have to wait to get relief.
Conlin said there is “blatant discrimination” going on because people are being denied access to what they medically require.
“Cannabis patients have to be recognized as legitimate patients; we need to get away from thinking of us as potheads,” he pointed out.
Conlin said he has never had a criminal record and volunteers in his community.
He encouraged council not to take the position of fear.
“We ask for your tolerance and understanding, and that you do more than say you’re going to wait for the law to change.”
Conlin said governments wouldn’t say that if the laws were victimizing different skin colours and religious beliefs.
According to Conlin, medical marijuana dispensaries divert cannabis out of the hands of youth and into the hands of adults.
“Every time you shut down a dispensary, you put cannabis back on the street,” he said.
Conlin said municipalities have a degree of control over dispensaries and can set whatever regulations they want.
But Mayor Ron Hovanes told Conlin what he didn’t want to hear – that council wants to wait for the laws of the land to set the parameters on dispensaries.
Hovanes expressed his concern about “pop-up” dispensaries (legitimate or not) lacking quality standards and codes of practice that you see in professional business outlets.
“Who’s growing this stuff (marijuana)? We need to have parameters before we give a business licence,” the mayor said.
Conlin said all of Starbuds’ products are laboratory facilitated with doctors’ expertise. And all clients must have authorization from a doctor, he noted.
Conlin admitted that Starbuds is not a licenced producer, but it is applying to be one.
Hovanes said he hopes to see a governing body established to oversee the medical marijuana industry.
Councillor Larry Schwartzenberger said he would hate to see council approve a dispensary before the government potentially sets different parameters.
“Then what do we do with the dispensary we’ve already approved?
Conlin said he predicts that communities will see storefronts for both recreational and medical marijuana.
Canadians use medical cannabis for the following ailments: severe arthritis, spinal cord injury, AIDS, multiple sclerosis, cancer and epilepsy.
