Rosemère, July 3, 2018 – The Town of Rosemère made public the results of its online survey of residents on the use of cannabis. Carried out from May 10 to 27, this survey made it possible to obtain citizens’ concerns and evaluate social acceptability, as they relate to the federal government’s legalization of marijuana and the municipal by-law that will provide a framework for the sale and use of this substance in Rosemère.

Close to 1,000 persons responded to the survey. “We wish to extend our sincere thanks to Rosemerites for their important contribution to this citizen participation measure. It was essential for us sound out our residents on this issue and allow them to express themselves freely, since we want to be transparent in addressing this issue that is of concern to them. The data provided by the survey and its results served to enrich our reflection on the development of a new by-law reflecting the needs and concerns that have been expressed,” stated Eric Westram, mayor of Rosemère.

Further to this, at the municipal council meeting of July 3, 2018, the Town will be presenting a notice of motion to modify its current by-law (794). Dealing with the quality of life, this by-law will be modified to provide a framework for the use of cannabis in Rosemère as well as matters related to its retail sale. The municipal council wishes to follow up on opinions expressed in the online survey and ban the use of marijuana in public places (streets, sidewalks, parks, cycling paths, etc.). This new by-law will be adopted at the council meeting of September 11.

Highlights of the survey:

• Half of respondents (50%) favour the legalization of marijuana in Canada, while a fairly large proportion of them (43.2%) are against its legalization and a certain number (7%) are undecided on the issue.
• Slightly more than half of respondents (56%) stated that they were concerned by the use of cannabis on Rosemère’s territory. 
• A large proportion of respondents (62%) do not believe that the legalization of cannabis will reduce their feeling of safety on the Town’s territory.
• Half of respondents (50.4%) did not want an outlet of the Québec Cannabis Society selling the product in the Town while 40.2% of respondents are rather in favour of having an outlet in Rosemère. A certain number remain undecided (9.2%).
• Two-thirds of respondents (66.5%) want Rosemère to adopt a by-law restricting the use of cannabis to inside private Rosemère properties.

Moreover, issues viewed as most important, with regards to the use of cannabis, relate to the influence on our youth (the leading concern), public health and road safety. Other issues raised, by order of importance, were: criminality, civic-mindedness, individual freedom and economics.

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