Those interested in opening a cannabis store in Surrey, BC, have until Tuesday, September 17, to send in their application.
Surrey City Council released a proposal for up to 12 cannabis stores in BC’s second-largest city in early 2024, approving the plan in April. The city has said it prefers to receive applications on or before September 17, 2024, with up to two locations for each of the city’s six distinct communities: Whalley/City Centre, Guildford, Fleetwood, Newton, South Surrey, and Cloverdale.
The city’s plan requires stores to be a minimum of 200m from schools, community centres, and other cannabis stores.
A previous city council had banned cannabis stores from Surrey entirely. Since then, several stores have popped up on the city’s border in neighbouring communities. Residents can also receive deliveries from stores located in other cities.
The city says the Request for Expression of Interest (RFEOI) selection process is expected to be completed in October. Selected applications will then advance to the council for consideration and a public hearing, which is expected in the fall of 2024. The city has also indicated it could allow more rounds of applications in the future.
Although there is no fee associated with responding to the RFEOI, applications that advance to city council for rezoning will face a rezoning fee of around $5,209 to cover the city’s costs. If an application is approved by council, there is also a business licence fee of around $913.00.
There is also an associated $7,500 application fee to the BC Liquor and Cannabis Regulation Branch (LCRB) (the application for a liquor store is $2,200).
The city will not begin reviewing applications prior to September 17, 2024. Applications will be scored by the city based on different factors such as location and distance from sensitive areas like schools, recreation areas, and other cannabis stores within the city limits, as well as availability of parking, and related experience of the proposed store operator. The city will then decide on the highest-scored finalist and notify all finalists in writing of its decision.
With more than 600,000 residents, Surrey is the second largest city in BC, just behind Vancouver. The BC government currently lists more than 80 stores as approved in Vancouver. Neighbouring city Langley, with a population of about 150,000, has three cannabis stores, while Delta, another neighbouring city, has a population of about 100,000 and has seven cannabis stores.
Although many residents responded to a city survey saying that they supported more than 12 locations, some councillors said starting with 12 was a good way to avoid the flood of new stores some other cities have seen.
The survey found that 68% of respondents support the idea of 12 or more stores in Surrey. Some 62% said they strongly disagree/disagree with limiting the number of cannabis stores to just 12 locations. Another 38% said this was too many locations.
Several cannabis retailers are located along the city’s border in neighbouring municipalities like Langley and Vancouver.
Because of this timeline, cannabis stores in Surrey will not likely factor into the provincial election scheduled for October 19.
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