Two cannabis production facilities approved on edge of Calgary, despite odour concerns

Rocky View County approved two cannabis production facilities this week, attracting the ire of some neighbouring Calgary residents and the envy of some city councillors.

County council on Tuesday unanimously approved a land-use change to allow for a cannabis cultivation facility on an undeveloped site south of CrossIron Drive and east of Dwight McLellan Trail.

Around 215 letters of opposition to the application were submitted to Rocky View County — almost all of them from neighbouring residents in Calgary’s Redstone and Skyview communities — concerned about the potential for odour from the facility wafting to nearby homes.

“The resistance from Calgary was well-organized by a group that doesn’t want to see cannabis production,” said Rocky View County Reeve Greg Boehlke, who said he felt some of the concerns over odour were overstated given the mitigation measures employed by commercial cannabis facilities to control air flow and smell.

“Generally, the wind is prevailing out of the west, so it will carry whatever odour there is — hopefully none — completely away from the residential area.”

The nearest homes are more than one kilometre away across Stoney Trail, Boehlke said, and the facility exceeded the minimum setback requirement of 100 metres from residential areas.

The project will still have to obtain development permits and approval from Health Canada before going ahead.

The application was one of two cannabis facility proposals approved by Rocky View Council on Tuesday. The second one, in the hamlet of Janet, was brought forward by former Calgary city councillor Andre Chabot, who is working as a consultant for the project.

Calgary officials have jealously eyed some of the development dollars flowing into Rocky View County for recent projects, including cannabis facilities, as Calgary continues to compete with the county for regional investment dollars.

“When I can stand in my ward and look across the street and see actively the amount of business that’s going on in Rocky View County it makes me furious that we’re not trying to keep it here,” said north-end Coun. Jyoti Gondek.

“What we should be doing as a council is understanding where we are losing growth potential.”

Rocky View County officials say businesses are attracted to the area by the proximity to Calgary’s labour force, lower land costs and lower property taxes.

Calgary officials acknowledge city services come at a higher cost, but there are more of them, including better emergency services, better access to water services and public transit.

When it comes to cannabis production, Calgary has already attracted some significant investment.

There were nine development permits issued for cannabis production facilities within Calgary city limits as of March 12, according to data provided by the city. Some of those permits were for renovations or additions to existing facilities.

As of April 26, Health Canada’s website listed three companies in Calgary with a federal licence to cultivate or process cannabis: Bloom Cultivation Ltd., Boaz Pharmaceuticals Inc., and Joi Botanicals Ltd.

But council members say they would be happy to see more industrial-type uses and businesses finding a home in the city.

“We are very much in competition with our neighbours in Rocky View in trying to entice big industrial land users into our tax base,” said Coun. Gian-Carlo Carra, who sits on the Calgary Metropolitan Region Board.

“We have to be thoughtful about how we place them, but we do have industrial lands and Rocky View has industrial lands that are designed to accommodate these kinds of uses, and these are the kinds of uses that drive our economy.”

[email protected]
Twitter: @mpotkins