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There were seven winners in Ontario’s East Region, 19 in Toronto and the Greater Toronto Area, five in Ontario’s northern region, which includes additional stores in Thunder Bay, and 11 winners in the province’s western region. Like the first lottery round, most of the winners appeared to be individuals or sole proprietorswith little connection to the cannabis industry, whether legally or illegally.

Photo by Dax Melmer for National Post files

“It was pretty skewed in favour of sole proprietors, which was surprising to me given the tougher requirements this time around,” Fraser remarked.

Three of the seven winners in the east of the province all have locations in the same retail complex in Innisfil, Ont, a situation which Fraser says is bound to create problems for those business owners. “Two of those owners are going to have to move somewhere else. There can’t be three cannabis stores in the same location in a small Ontario town, when there are just 3 locations right now in all of Ottawa,” she said.

According to the AGCO, applicants now have until Aug. 28 to apply for a Retail Operator Licence and a Retail Store Authorization, upon which the regulator will undertake an eligibility review to determine if licenses can be dispensed.

A key contention between lottery winners and the AGCO in the first lottery round was a criteria that forbid the winner from ceding control of ownership to a larger entity such as a licensed producer. The provincial government has long indicated its preference for cannabis retail stores to be operated by small business owners.