Vancouver’s first licensed cannabis shop opens Saturday

Photo: Twitter.com/ecsvan

The first licensed and legal pot shop will open its doors in Vancouver on Saturday (Jan. 5).

Evergreen Cannabis, which operated prior to the national legalization of marijuana in Canada, is set to legally re-open its doors at 11 a.m. at 2868 West 4th Ave. in Kitsilano now that it’s jumped through the necessary hoops to obtain its licenses.

Evergreen was originally set to open on Dec. 29, 2018, but the company said in a tweet that “due to the holiday season impacting timelines at Vancouver City Hall, we will be delaying our grand (re)-opening until Saturday January 5th.”

Evergreen was the first company to receive the necessary approvals from the provincial government, as well as the municipal government: Cannabis stores must also gain civic approval before being allowed to open up shop.

As of Jan. 3, the B.C. government says it has received 102 paid applications for cannabis licenses in Greater Vancouver and the Sunshine Coast. Of those, two licenses have been issued, and one has been approved with conditions.

In the Surrey/Fraser Valley area, another 18 paid applications have been submitted, but none have received provincial approval.

Three other licenses have been issued by the province, in the Interior/North areas of B.C.