Council voted to reconsider the signage component of the land use bylaw for cannabis businesses during their regular meeting on Tuesday, Sept. 11.
"We received a letter from the Hive Cannabis Company," explained CAO Mark Power. "I basically encouraged them to draft a letter and send it in because this was the one particular area that we didn't have anywhere close to a clear mandate one way or the other."
A request was required to be sent into the town before the bylaw could be amended. The matter will be brought in front of council during their next meeting with the proposed amendment added.
Council will have an opportunity to discuss the changes again before a public hearing is held, when residents will be allowed to voice their comments prior to it being voted on.
"I think we should be re-looking at this," Coun. Chad Colbourne said.
Results were divided when council discussed the signage for cannabis retailers earlier in the year, while the open house survey showed residents are in favour of sign restrictions.
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Town donating to local causes
Council agreed to donate $250 to the Notre Dame High School grad fundraiser, along with some Town of Bonnyville swag for their silent auction.
They also voted to purchase a table for $400 to the Bonnyville and District SPCA Raise the Woof fundraiser on Saturday, Sept. 29.
Theft and property crime increasing
The quarterly RCMP report was presented to council on Tuesday, showing robbery crimes are on the rise in the area.
"One thing that I would stress that we keep in mind is that a robbery isn't always the grandiose image that we have for robberies," explained Sgt. Sarah Parke, acting detachment commander for the Bonnyville RCMP. "It's not necessarily an armed suspect in a liquor store or convenience store. It could be as simple as one person demanding something from another person, and them feeling no other option than to turn it over. That can be considered a robbery."
Coun. Ray Prevost pointed out that stats show theft under $5,000 and vehicle theft have doubled since 2016.
Parke said, "(Vehicle theft) isn't dying down, and we continue to impress upon residents to ensure that their doors are locked and they're taking precautions, not leaving valuables in there."
Overall, person crimes increased to 203 from January to July this year, compared to 180 during the same time period in 2017. Property crime came in at 604 compared to 527 in 2017.
