North Bay City Councillor Mac Bain will keep his final motion as part of this sitting municipal government brief.

The Ontario PC government is requiring a decision on the cannabis question by no later than the new year and it appears as though Bain’s motion, seconded by Councillor Daryl Vaillancourt, will be one of the final matters dealt with by this Council.

The motion will seek support from around the Council table for North Bay to opt-in to having bricks and mortar retail cannabis shops come April 2019, as set out in the Government of Ontario’s Cannabis Act 2017.

The Government of Canada has passed Bill C-45, also known as the Cannabis Act, and it comes into effect on October 17. Combined with Bill C-46, which amends the Criminal Code of Canada, these pieces of legislation will legalize the recreational use of cannabis in Canada.

Tonight’s committee and regular meetings of Council are the last scheduled before the October 22 municipal elections.

The agenda is lengthier for tonight’s meeting as this Council attempts to address items that have lingered throughout the term.

Besides the cannabis opt-in motion, other items of note include a presentation from a road safety committee and another from Tourism North Bay on the possibility of a tax on hotel accommodations in North Bay.