Since the opening of hotboxcafe in 2003 a few pot cafes have popped up. In the last few months it has been a small explosion. Now city council has taken notice and now our beloved Hot Box is facing a serious challenge.
With the opening of Vape on the lake in Etobichoke, in the ward of conservative city councilor Mark Grimes. The councilor, has now made it his mission to see all cannabis positive establishments go down in smoke.
As much as we would love to see many places where people can toke in peace, it has become saturated and now an irritation to the city.
This should not be the case !!!! Since pot cafes/ vapor lounges are generally very peaceful places. But it is.
It is up to the owners of these establishments to make sure their community is chill with the business in the neighborhood, that their business isn't too close to schools. Since the vapor lounge is a new and still gray line illegal, owners should take more care in how they conduct their businesses.
Because of a few new owners that decided to cross that gray line, dealing, selling booze, operating as after hours, as well as careless location placEment.
Now all lounges and Toronto potheads are going to suffer.
We encourage you to write, call, email etc. your city counselor and let them know you want these establishments in your city!!!
http://www.cannabisculture.com/v2/content/2011/12/02/Toronto-City-Council-Launches-Investigation-Vapour-Lounges
ReplyDeleteSorry but you are MISTAKEN! Vape On The Lake ISN'T across the street from Grimes office. That location is vacant and that building was offered to us to rent but we decided to go with the vacant build across the street. Please do some reseach before making FALSE and MISLEADING accusations.
ReplyDeleteGrimes himself stated that he has NEVER been inside a vapour lounge so how can he make his comments.
We met with the Federal representative for Etobicoke Lakeshore and he is 100% supportive and also let Grimes know that our location is 100% legit.
No one is saying it is your fault, we are simply stating that the city is getting irritated with the amount of new lounges opening in the city. Vape on the lake is simply the lounge that irritated this particular councilor. We apologize and will change the wording.
ReplyDeleteSeems to me that if Cannabis Cafes are to survive in Toronto, a unified front by owners is essential to that.
ReplyDeleteOwners of cannabis cafes should become self regulating and develop open lines of communication between one another.
If all present owners of cannabis cafes came to the table as a council to oversee the development of a system that allowed for the expansion of personal franchises but also provided guidelines to that development that would allow them to grow within the "grey" lines of the law. They could effectively challenge any by-law amendments that would effect the growth of cannabis culture in Toronto as well as defend against any attacks by the city.
I frequent both the Hotbox Cafe and Vapor Lounge and while both provide different services I see them equally as cannabis cafes.
I also see an attack by the city against one cafe as an attack against all. Thinking that one location is viewed by the city any differently then another is absurd. Have no doubt that under the cities current administration if ever an affective move was made against cannabis culture in Toronto it would mean the end of cannabis culture in Toronto.
Unite or die is the final message. Will cannabis cafe owners continue to view each other as competition fighting for a market share or do will they realize they are competitors fighting for shares of a market in jeopardy of no longer existing?
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Cannabis-Friendly-Business-Association/212997305443147
ReplyDeleteAll of us who own / opperate vapour lounges in Toronto are willing to work together. The majority of the lounges are located in the downtown core with a couple located in the East End and 1 in the West End. If the City were to close down the lounges they would also have to shut down the vapour lounge at the MTCC which I am not sure they want to do as the event at the MTCC brings in quite a bit of $ $ $ from tourism plus not to mention it will lose Canadas only Medical Cannabis Expo. If Toronto City Council vote to shut down lounges then the TY Expo will move to Vancouver BC
ReplyDeleteTake Care and Peace
Marco Renda
Federal Exemptee
Publisher
Treating Yourself
The Alternative Medicine Journal
Owner: Vape On The Lake
Has the city of Toronto really become "saturated" with Vapor Lounges? I'm only seeing about a half dozen while there are literally HUNDREDS of bars serving alcohol EVERY NIGHT with fights and other public disturbances.
ReplyDeleteI need to laugh about the issue of proximity to a school. First off you need to be over 18 to attend any of the Lounges in the city. Old enough to vote at least ;) No grade school children are coming to the lounge. There are bars, strip clubs and massage parlors close to schools in this city. Why are the potheads under the microscope? Are we causing more problems than dunks and strippers?
Your article states, "Because of a few new owners that decided to cross that gray line, dealing, selling booze, operating as after hours, as well as careless location placEment.
Now all lounges and Toronto potheads are going to suffer." As the manager of Zion Lounge I'd like to know witch lounge you are referring to in this statement. I'd also like to know who wrote this article? Don't hide behind your chat room alias!
Davin Christensen
manager Zion Lounge
Hey Davin, this article is not a slam on anyone. It is just what's happening. We all need to work together and support each other in order to stay open.
ReplyDeleteAbi roach
"Because of a few new owners that decided to cross that gray line, dealing, selling booze, operating as after hours, as well as careless location placEment."
ReplyDeleteWho?
This article is poorly written and has obvious stabs at other locations. While i applaud the motivation behind it, this writing is just plain bad.
ReplyDeleteThe revenue that the city gets from your expo Marco is immeasurably low, a fraction of a drop in the bucket. The revenue however from all of these lounges existing, is measurable.
There is already a sense of unity amongst the businesses. Finding agreeable ground with the city is more important.
Most of the lounges have been in operation for several years, with only Vapor Social and Vape on the Lake having opened more recently.
An article like this, having been written by a business owner is easier read as jealousy, rather than concern for a lack of unity, as was intended.
dear eric, that is totally untrue. There is no jealousy. The blog simply states, that there is one POed city councilor and a bunch of POed communities. Which is true. All of the existing establishments need to deal with the situation together. I may not be a writer, that's true :) but the story had to be written and the word had to get out. I meant no slander to anyone.
ReplyDeleteFrank Grimes isn't even the guy spearheading this, anyone who says so has it all wrong. He has no authority in council to do a thing about the lounges. Cesar Pallatio(sp?) whom I have met with, is head of the licensing board... That's the man we should be contacting, not Grimes.
ReplyDelete