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Following BC’s announcement earlier this year that certain businesses could open patio space to cannabis consumption, a handful of cannabis stores and other businesses in the province have taken action.
The Billy Miner Ale House and Cafe in Maple Ridge recently advertised a new outdoor consumption space in partnership with a local cannabis store, Cheeky’s Cannabis. Both businesses are owned, at least in part, by parent company, Springs Group.
“When I first heard about the amendment, I thought this just makes sense. They already have the space, they have these pubs where people are smoking. Why not enhance the smoking patios and become a little more like a lounge, set some games up, make it more appealing to this generation.”
Laura Rowse, Cheeky’s Cannabis
Laura Rowse, the co-owner of Cheeky’s Cannabis, which also has a location in Vancouver’s Kitsilano neighbourhood, says the partnership with the Billy Miner will serve as a sort of pilot project to assess consumer demand and troubleshoot any challenges. She came up with the idea following BC’s announcement in February that locations like pubs and cafes that have patio areas where customers can smoke tobacco can also now allow cannabis consumption.
If it goes well at the first location, Rowse says she hopes to expand to another pub in Maple Ridge, as well as a new location in Mission near a new store they plan to open in the future. The current and proposed locations are all in coordination with the Springs Group, which Rowse says has been very helpful through the process.
“We’re very grateful to have their support. When I first heard about the amendment, I thought this just makes sense. They already have the space, they have these pubs where people are smoking. Why not enhance the smoking patios and become a little more like a lounge, set some games up, make it more appealing to this generation.”
Rowse says she was inspired by other cannabis consumption spaces she has visited, including in the US, which gave her a vision of a different kind of community consumption space than how many bars are currently set up. One location in Palm Springs, California, the Four Twenty Bank, was particularly eye-opening.
“To me, that’s my inspiration, is what she’s done there. There’s games, good ventilation, very open and welcoming. I really think this is the future of pubs. People don’t want to just sit around and drink anymore. I think people are interested in having something else to do. And this just makes it more cannabis friendly.”
Seed and Stone, another small cannabis chain with a handful of locations in BC, is currently developing a similar space at a cannabis store it operates in partnership with the Songhees First Nations on Vancouver Island.
Vikram Sachdeva, the Founder & CEO of Seed and Stone, says he is working with the local leadership to develop a space with a food truck and an area where customers can enjoy cannabis.
Sam Jones, the owner of 2% Jazz Coffee, a cafe in Victoria, also began hosting cannabis-themed events in April.
“It’s a very casual affair,” Jones explained to StratCann earlier this year. “There’s no smoking indoors at all. No buying, nothing like that. It’s just an open cafe where people can go out on the patio and smoke a joint. Then you can come back in and enjoy a coffee and some good conversation.”
Instead, he works with local cannabis companies who help host the event, which can serve as a learning session for those interested.
“We just want to provide a space where the idea of having a joint can be normalized.”
Further north on the island in Cumberland, the owner of cannabis store Trugreen Cannabis is helping to develop a community space on the property next to their store that will feature a cannabis consumption space, which store owner Michael Arneja plans to “soft launch” for April 20.
Marianna Wolff, the owner of Cannabis Cottage, a cannabis store in Penticton, is hosting a grand opening for their own outdoor consumption space in front of their store on April 20.
“This was what we were hoping to do from the beginning,” Wolff told StratCann. “We secured a space with the hope that at some point the government would allow for consumption spaces as well. So right now we’re just jumping over the moon.”
Back in Maple Ridge, Rowse says the ultimate goal is to provide a comfortable place for people to consume cannabis outside of their homes without being pushed into a back parking lot or alley.
“My goal is for people to be comfortable, and I think this is a chance for a lot of pubs and similar businesses in BC to bring people back after covid.”
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