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Editorial: Cannabis Culture a sign of the times

But perhaps the pot shop operating in a Port Coquitlam strip mall should have waited until the law is on their side
Cannabis Culture
Cannabis Culture recently opened up in a strip mall in Port Coquitlam.

We appreciate the need to be first in the market but perhaps Cannabis Culture, the new pot shop that opened two months ago in Port Coquitlam, should wait for the law to come around before selling its wares.

Company spokesperson Jodie Emery said the business sells to adults 19 years and older with proper identification and is following the Amsterdam model, whereby the sale and possession of small amounts of cannabis at coffee shops for personal use is permitted even though it's technically illegal.

She was buoyed by the news that several U.S. states voted in favour of pot legalization but, as that hasn't yet happened in B.C., the company is operating in a grey area that is posing challenges to local bylaws staff and the RCMP.

And while the company may be able to afford $150 daily fines and other limits placed on it by law enforcement, people who purchase the drugs are putting themselves at legal risk as possession is still a criminal offence in Canada.

So in this case, it's very much buyer beware.