A proposal for a recreational cannabis store near downtown Courtenay has gone up in smoke.
On Monday, Courtenay council members voted against a zoning amendment bylaw which would have helped pave the way for the store at 1025 Cliffe Avenue.
Smoke on the Water had applied for a zoning amendment to allow for the cannabis shop.
Manager Matt Ceron said the hope is to open a new business, called Fire in the Sky, and operate it next to Smoke on the Water.
But after feedback from the public at a July 2nd public hearing, the council voted down third reading of the zoning amendment.
Mayor Bob Wells said there were concerns about good neighbour relationships.
“When there was the public hearing, the neighbours kind of spoke out that they were having issues already, and so council said, this is the kind of thing that would take something that be already strained and make it worse,” Wells said.
Wells said the application is all but dead.
“The client could apply again, I guess but really what we’re looking for is people coming forward that have all their ducks in a row,” Wells said. “In this case, it just didn’t seem to have the same support from neighbours as some of the other applications.”
