Higher Limits Comes Down

After almost three years of business, cannabis lounge Higher Limits has shut its doors.

Jon Liedtke, owner of the lounge, lays the blame at the feet of the Progressive Conservative government.

“The Doug Ford government implemented changes to the Smoke-Free Ontario Act which equate medical cannabis with Tobacco, e-cigarettes, and recreational cannabis,” said Liedtke. “As such, consumption of any of the above are illegal in public spaces.”

According to Liedtke, the lounge provided a safe space for medicinal marijuana users to consume in a space where it would not be prohibited, such as apartments, care facilities, condos or for parents who do not wish to smoke around their children.

Higher Limits was also a regular spot for local students to study and hang out off-campus without alcohol.

During its nearly three years of business, Higher Limits hosted comedy nights, open microphone nights, as well as one-off events such as a “toking game” during the third presidential debate between now president Donald Trump and democratic nominee Hillary Clinton.

Other cannabis-related business owners in Windsor have bones to pick with the legalization process itself. George Metropoulos and Yodite Woldeselassie, co-owners of CBD Emporium, don’t think cannabis should have been commercialized.

“Cigarettes, I understand because cigarettes are toxic,” said Woldeselassie. “Someone shouldn’t have to be in a public place and smell cancerous smoke. I’m a cigarette smoker and I agree with that law.”

However, Woldeselassie believes that marijuana is different.

“You’re not going to get second-hand cancerous smoke from cannabis. People should be able to smoke (marijuana) where they want. People can’t smoke in apartment buildings so at least give them vape lounges,” said Woldeselassie.

“Now people can’t smoke where they want, so now they have to smoke in the streets? What does that do?”

This isn’t an issue that Woldeselassie herself has to worry about, however.

“I have a medical card, so I can smoke just about wherever,” she said. “But if you don’t, you can’t smoke anywhere.”

“I find (business) was better before legalization. Growing up, (selling marijuana) was a way for us to get out of our poverty without hurting anybody else or doing anything wrong,” said Metropoulos.

“It gave people an avenue to put food on the table and now the government and people who want billions of dollars, they want that too.”

Metropoulos said that while he understands regulating alcohol or tobacco with all the proven risks they have to their consumers, marijuana has no such negative effects for adults and he sees the whole commercialization process as the government taking a method of making money away from the people.

As for the future of marijuana in Canada, Windsor recently voted to allow cannabis retail stores in a city council vote and the first set of licenses are expected to be issued this year. However, only 25 shops will open province-wide on April 1.