Edmonton city councillor Mike Nickel thinks towns across the country are neglecting regulations for cannabis cafes.

“Cannabis lounges are going to come,” he told Global News. “No other place in the country right now, I don’t think, has enabled in their bylaws the concept of a cannabis lounge, so we’re breaking new ground here.”

Council will debate Nickel’s motion in their upcoming meeting on Tuesday.

“If it’s a legitimate product, then we have to see it consumed responsibly,” he said.

“This is an opportunity to talk about how we can grow some business in town.”

Nickel has said Alberta’s capital needs to improve how it oversees zoning and retail stores, calling Edmonton one of “the most difficult to deal with.”

“I’ve heard it from across industries, be it manufacturers, be it people in the commercial side — retailers — it’s clear across the board, the same old, same old,” Nickel told Global News.

“So that’s why we’ve kind of got to fix this thing and, are we business friendly or are we not? Are we open for business or are we not?”

Edmonton city councillor Mike Nickel hopes the city can do more to beef up cannabis regulations. Shaughn Butts / Postmedi

This comes amid complaints from storeowners like those of Fire and Flower, whose business was denied because it breached the minimum distance requirement between a pot shop to a school by 80 cm.

“Where’s the discretion for about this (stretches his arms to show the distance) amount of space to make a store happen? Come on,” he said.

“Just make it happen … I’ve called back to the administration [on this matter] saying, ‘You know, this is kind of absurd.’ ”