Burlington cannabis store can start preparing to open after receiving provincial licence
2 Hamilton operators are still in the public notice stage of the application process
A Burlington-based retailer can start getting ready to open after receiving one of the province's first cannabis licences.
Retail store authorization for David Nguyen, listed as the operator of RELM Cannabis, was announced Monday by the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO).
The AGCO lists RELM's address as 103 - 4031 Fairview St. in Burlington.
The government regulator states that once retail store authorization has been issued an operator can finalize their shop set-up and begin ordering and receiving cannabis and related products in preparation for opening.
Store inspection still needs to happen
However, the AGCO still needs to conduct an inspection before the store can begin serving customers.
RELM joins The Niagara Herbalist in St. Catharines as well as retailers in Toronto, Brampton and London on the shortlist of sites across Ontario for which retail store authorization has been issued so far.
Two Hamilton locations, Canna Cabana Hamilton, which hopes to open in the Centre on Barton, and Hello Cannabis, which is applying to open in Dundas, are still in the public notice stage of the process.
"At this point, it is difficult to predict how many stores in Ontario will be ready to open as of April 1, wrote AGCO spokesperson Raymond Kahnert in an email, adding the regulator is focused on safety and maintaining the "integrity" of the province's cannabis.
"The AGCO will only licence operators and authorize stores once we are satisfied they have met all legal and regulatory requirements."