The city’s crackdown on unlicensed pot dispensaries began Wednesday as Toronto police delivered warning letters to property owners across the city.

The letters are “designed to remind them of what their obligations are under the law,” and suggest possible consequences, Toronto Police Service spokesman Mark Pugash said Wednesday.

He wasn’t prepared to say how many letters were issued, but Toronto currently has more than 100 marijuana storefronts, surpassing Vancouver as the cannabis capital of Canada.

Those found guilty of contravening zoning bylaws could face fines of up to $50,000 for a corporation and $25,000 for an individual.

Ottawa has promised to legalize pot for recreational use and introduce a legalized regulatory framework. Currently, however, the only legal source of marijuana is that grown for medical purposes by licensed producers approved by Health Canada. Prescription holders can only receive their supply in the mail.

Although the government has done nothing to legalize marijuana yet, dozens of pot retailers have popped up around the city and supporters argue they should be left alone.

Nevertheless, the city says they’re breaking the law because selling pot “in this manner is not permitted under the federal regulations governing” medical marijuana, said Mark Sraga, director of investigations at Municipal Licensing and Standards.

The division is liaising with other enforcement agencies, including the TPS and other city divisions, to “undertake all appropriate enforcement efforts,” Sraga said in an emailed statement. An update “will be provided in the future.”

Licensing staff would not comment on the warning letters.

On Wednesday, Toronto Police Chief Mark Saunders said his department is working with city hall and federal prosecutors to determine the “best course of action.”

“That is a grey area, we are waiting for the federal government to do what they need to do,” he said in an interview on CBC Radio.

While police are investigating complaints, there is a reluctance to lay any charges simply to have the cases tossed out of court once Ottawa proceeds with legalization, he said.

Toronto’s public health boss, meanwhile, wants strict federal rules on the sale and use of recreational marijuana when it becomes legal.

“Designing a regulatory approach for non-medical cannabis is complex,” Dr. David McKeown, the medical officer of health, said in a statement with a report released Wednesday.

“We are therefore urging the federal government to use an evidence-based public health approach that builds on the lessons learned from regulating tobacco and alcohol. This approach will help reduce potential health harms for the population as a whole.”

McKeown argues that, along with therapeutic benefits, marijuana can have health hazards including: the risk of impaired driving; exposure to cancer-causing chemicals; poor respiratory health; mental health impacts from “frequent and heavy use”; and impacts on adolescent brain development.

He wants Toronto’s health board to urge federal Health Minister Jane Philpott to ensure “strong government regulatory control” on: recreational marijuana’s availability; a minimum purchasing age; rules to minimize its promotion; strong impaired-driving policies; and restrictions on smoking pot in public places.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has said his government will move next year to legalize, regulate and restrict access to marijuana.

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Scarborough Liberal MP Bill Blair, Toronto’s former police chief and now Trudeau’s point man on modernizing pot laws, has talked about the need for strict regulation of the drug once it’s legal.

Mayor John Tory said the spread of pot shops is “verging on being out of control.” He has asked licensing division to explore ways of regulating pot businesses.

Vancouver and Victoria have introduced licensing fees and regulations that control pot shops’ proximity to schools, community centres and other dispensaries.

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