It looks as if the cost of doing business for cannabis retail stores in Kelowna is coming down.
Planning manager Ryan Smith says the city is working on significantly reducing the price cannabis stores pay for a yearly business licence.
Presently, cannabis retailers are charged $9,500 annually, while the typical business licence is in the $100 to $150 range.
Smith says the fee was set as high as it was initially to allow the city to recoup its costs of setting up the cannabis retail regime three years ago.
With staff time, inspections, and training for staff, RCMP and bylaws, Smith says costs of implementing the program over that time is between $300,000 and $400,000.
“The licensing fee was set high initially to recover those costs,” said Smith.
“We are pretty close now, so we are going to reduce the fee.”
Smith says how low the business licence fee will drop will depend on the level of work required by city staff.
If the city will be required to inspect cannabis retail operations on a yearly basis, then he expects the fee will be higher than most businesses in order to recoup those costs.
He says it depends on the level of involvement the province will undertake.
Smith expects the new fees will be introduced later this year as part of an overall revamping of the business licensing bylaw.
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