Cannabis farmgate store in Victoria moves one step closer to reality

A cannabis farmgate store in Victoria has moved one step closer to becoming a reality. 

Victoria City Council has voted to support the application from the Victoria Cannabis Company (VCC) cannabis farmgate store at 340 Mary Street, in Victoria West.

In a 7-1 decision, council voted to direct staff to advise the BC Liquor and Cannabis Regulation Branch (LCRB) of their decision to issue the producer store retail licence (farmgate) the VCC. 

The approval will still be subject to the company’s compliance with the city’s bylaws and permits. The city is requiring the VCC to build a sidewalk adjacent to the facility, which is located on the Galloping Goose Trail, a multi use trail on a former rail line through the city. 

The Victoria Cannabis Company first filed their application for a farmgate store licence in early 2023. The company’s application passed third reading shortly by September 2023, with council sending it back to city staff to address concerns with the location.

BC’s retail cannabis regulations require an approval from local council before considering approval of the application. 

In the most recent staff report approved by Council, it was noted that there were not any significant concerns about community impact of storefront cannabis retail at the application’s location, that the location would have minimal community impact, and that there were no concerns from police. The report did not have ongoing concerns with odour associated with the store’s adjacent cannabis facilities. 

The possible future cannabis farmgate store is located at the site of VCC’s production facility that is currently home to a nursery, two micro cultivation sites, and a standard processing site.

The province began accepting applications for producer retail stores (PRS) in November 2022. The program allows micro cultivators, standard cultivators, and nurseries to sell their own products in a retail cannabis store at their own production facilities or sites, as well as an array of products from other producers. 

Only one such licence has been approved in that time, ShuCanna in Salmon Arm, which was licensed in August 2023. The province has also licensed two similar stores, one in Williams Lake and one in Chilliwack, under special arrangements with local First Nations called Section 119 agreements. 

A third farmgate application is also making its way through the municipal process in Pitt Meadows, currently.

There are more than 100 licensed cannabis facilities that could in theory be eligible to apply for such a farmgate licence. Some BC cannabis growers say the low number of applicants indicates a policy failure, citing concerns with the nearly $10,000 in licensing and application fees, as well as additional costs associated with BC’s retail cannabis regulations. 

Kyp Rowe, VP of brand development at VCC, who spoke with StratCann at an earlier date about the application, says their goal is to create a dynamic storefront that can show off not only their own unique cannabis products from cannabis grown on-site, but also other small craft producers in BC. VCC’s location is near the E&N Rail Trail, a popular bike path. 

“We are very excited at the opportunity to be among the first potential Production Retail Store locations in British Columbia,” says Rowe. “What sets us apart from other locations is the amount of frontage traffic we have in Vic West. We are not located in an industrial park on the outskirts of town. Our store is just minutes from the sea wall in Lime Bay and has the potential to become a tourist destination.  

“Our goal will be to focus on British Columbia producers as well as featuring our own flower grown and packaged on-site. Now, more than ever, small provincial craft producers need an opportunity at the retail level to showcase their products. With all of the pay-to-play for shelf space and the discount retail chains, more and more small producers are getting edged out by large corporations. We want to be able to tell BC’s rich craft cannabis story, and we feel this new farmgate store will give us this opportunity.”

Rowe tells StratCann he and the team at VCC are excited to move forward with the project, estimating they expect their sidewalk to be completed in the coming weeks.