Smoking and vaping cannabis in public spaces will soon be banned in the City.
On Monday, City Council approved the third reading for new legislation on smoking marijuana. Mayor Gerald Aalbers says there has been some confusion around the new rules, but all the City has done is added cannabis to existing legislation.
“What we did, was we added cannabis to the existing smoking bylaw. So there is no smoking in places within the City. The definition of public places is an actual place verse the park as an example and things like that, whereas cannabis will not be allowed in Bud Miller Park to be smoked.”
Lloydminster is the first City in Alberta to pass legislation on banning the substance in public areas, which includes commercial buildings or vehicles, as well as parks and all public gathering spaces. Aalbers says the City’s number one priority is the public safety of residents.
“As a City, it’s very clear we want to protect the residents that do not want to consume or inhale second-hand smoke as they have in the past with smoking and that will be the same with cannabis.”
People can still consume the substance on their own personal property once it is legalized. In terms of renters, they have to talk to their landlords about whether or not the building allows smoking cannabis because it is not in the City’s jurisdiction.
The bylaw will still allow tobacco to be smoked on sidewalks and designated areas. The rules also state that no one is allowed to vape or smoke within five metres from a doorway or window of a building.