Opting in: Leamington mayor says Ont. government 'changed the game'

Leamington has opted in to cannabis retail storefronts — even though they're technically not eligible.

When the provincial government rolled back retail store licenses from 75 to 25, a population regulation was also added.

Municipalities with less than 50,000 residents won't be eligible for a license.

Mayor Hilda MacDonald says the Ontario government "changed the game" at the last minute, but the municipality opted in anyway.

"We listened to our presenters and we decided that we needed to engage right from the get go," said MacDonald. "Primarily to show the industry that we are willing to work with them."

MacDonald said last night's discussion was a "moot point."

"We made the decision despite the fact that our hands are tied."

Of the 25 licenses, only seven will be distributed throughout the West Region, which spans Hamilton, Niagara and Waterloo, down to Chatham-Kent and Essex.

In addition to Leamington, Amherstburg, Essex, Kingsville, Lakeshore, LaSalle and Tecumseh also do not meet population regulations for licenses.

MacDonald would rather not have to deal with cannabis choices on the municipal level.

"Decisions like this handed down to municipalities to deal with, I don't think that's fair," said MacDonald. "The upper levels, they're giving us the nasty bits to clean up."

MacDonald said despite the regulations, they're looking at cannabis retail as a business advantage for the community.

"So often, and is the case with Oshawa, municipalities don't have second chances," said MacDonald, referring to the closure of Heinz. "To me, we've had a second chance here. We are offering people all levels of work … entry level jobs with high levels of education. We're able to offer so much to young people."

MacDonald agrees with a slower rollout of cannabis retail, but not with the last-minute decision making the provincial government's been doing.

"They should have all their i's dotted and all their t's crossed. They didn't."