Two applications for retail cannabis shops in Langley Township were put on hold Monday as council decided to seek firmer criteria for choosing one applicant over another.
Council voted in April to allow just one retail cannabis shop per neighbourhood, plus one extra one near the 200th Street highway interchange in the Carvolth area, for a total of eight shops in the Township.
That set of a scramble of applications, with 18 received by early June.
On Monday, the council had two applications on its agenda for consideration, one for the Willowbrook area in the 20100 block of 64th Avenue, and one for the Carvolth area, proposed for the 8800 block of 201 Street.
Applications were to be considered on a “first come” basis, with a preference for shops that were located in commercial core areas, according to the policy adopted this spring.
Although the two applications put before council on Monday were the first in line, they were not the only ones. Township staff noted that there were multiple other applications for both the Carvolth and Willowbrook zones which had been received, but which had not been through the process to allow them to come to council for a vote.
If council had voted yes on Monday, they could have moved on to a public input process on both sites.
However, the council decided not to move on just yet.
Mayor Jack Froese suggested that both applications be deferred.
All cannabis store applications received up to Aug. 31 of this year will be presented together, by area, at a future meeting.
Township staff will also be asked to create more “selection criteria” so the council can make a decision on the most appropriate retail store for each area.
The motion was approved by the council.
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With a break in council coming up, it appears there will be no final decision on cannabis store applications until September at the earliest. The next council meeting is scheduled for Sept. 14.