130 Trans-Canada Highway

Council gave first three readings to Zoning Bylaw Amendment No. 3166.12 for 130 Trans-Canada Highway in Duncan, converting the site’s cannabis retail use from a temporary use permit (TUP) to a permanent zoning entitlement. The business has operated under two consecutive TUPs over six years with no enforcement record. No building changes are proposed; the amendment addresses land-use designation only. The property is a 3,872-square-foot building on a 0.65-acre lot with Trans-Canada Highway frontage and exposure to over 31,500 vehicles per day, according to a REALTOR.ca listing (https://www.realtor.ca/real-estate/27436790/130-trans-canada-hwy-duncan-east-duncan). Adoption is withheld pending Ministry of Transportation and Transit approval due to the highway adjacency, a standard condition for such sites. The unanimous vote and brief debate — with councillors citing the store’s clean operating history and the normalization of cannabis retail — reflect a council that is moving away from the three-year TUP renewal cycle. While the amendment is site-specific, the precedent value is moderate: it indicates a willingness to rezone other TUP-based cannabis stores that can demonstrate a compliant track record, lowering the regulatory friction for similar applications. The Ministry condition will remain a standard requirement for any highway-adjacent property, but it did not raise concerns during staff’s preliminary discussions. The operator is The Original Farm Duncan Ltd., an existing tenant, not a developer, so there are no construction or pipeline implications beyond the zoning change. Once the Ministry sign-off is obtained and the bylaw adopted, the store becomes a conforming use with no further land-use approvals required. The political risk on this file is negligible given the unanimous vote and absence of public opposition. The timeline now depends on the Ministry’s processing, which for a straightforward highway-access review is unlikely to extend beyond the current quarter.

Council gave first three readings to Zoning Bylaw Amendment No. 3166.12 for 130 Trans-Canada Highway in Duncan, conve…