GRIMES SMOKES OUT VAPOUR LOUNGES

TORONTO - Toronto council voted to freeze the licensing of any new
vapour lounges this week.

The move puts licenses on hold for new locations while city staff
conduct a comprehensive review of the businesses and their legality.

Council asked for the review to include recommendations on how they
can better control the activity and how the city could smoke out any
illegal activity happening in the lounges.

Councillor Mark Grimes pushed the issue at council.

In the motion approved by council, Grimes pointed out the businesses
are licensed as cafes but advertise themselves as vapour lounges.

"These lounges are permitting clientele to use, water pipes,
vapourizers and vapourizing accessories to smoke and inhale substances
such as marijuana and herbal mixtures," Grimes wrote.

"I hear these things are popping up, I have no idea what these things
even are but I don't know how we are even giving these licenses out,"
Grimes told the Sun Friday.

He said licensing staff told him vapour lounges have been granted
licenses as food establishments.

"It just boggles my mind how are staff are handing out these licenses
without any council direction whatsoever," Grimes said. "I think staff
should know this is going to be a contentious item."

Although he's never been to one, Grimes said he's been told "vapour
lounge" patrons can bring a small amount of pot, throw it into a
vaporizer - a device that shoots heated air through the marijuana -
and then the individual or group can inhale the vapour.

"It's like a smoking social lounge," he said.

Grimes said he wants council and city officials to "get a handle" on
vapour lounges before it gets out of hand.

"You look back on the holistic centres before council figured out what
was going on (that the centres often were rub and tugs in disguise) we
were inundated with them and it was too late," he said.

The staff report is due back at the February city council meeting.