The Alberta Gaming and Liquor Commission (AGLC) has received about 600 applications from companies interested in opening up a pot shop in the province since it started accepting applications on March 6.

A spokesperson for the AGLC said the number of applicants are "on par" with what the group was expecting, adding there's been a steady flow of applications.

The AGLC performs background checks on the applicant, director, shareholders and key employees to thwart those with criminal interests from setting up shop.

Anyone involved in illegal cannabis trade or convicted of serious violent and drug offences is not eligible for a retail cannabis licence.

So far, there are more than 400 applicants with clean criminal background and financial checks and 104 of them are in the City of Edmonton, according to the AGLC.

Above: Interactive map showing locations of potential cannabis dispensaries in the Edmonton-area as of May 23, 2018, according to the AGLC website.

After the AGLC posts the retail licence applications on its website, the community has 21 days to file a formal objection. Information on where to send objections can be found here.

“Anybody from the community -- whether you represent an association, an individual, a business -- you can write to the AGLC with your objections or you can call us,” Michelle Hynes-Dawson, AGLC spokesperson, explained.

Strict training

Short-listed candidates must successfully complete the AGLC’s mandatory SellSafe Cannabis Staff Training program, which will be available on May 1. All staff must also undergo the training program.

SellSafe is a four to six-hour course which helps workers understand what their responsibilities are to their customers, cannabis laws and AGLC policies.

Municipality gets final say

The province has established regulations about who can own and operate a cannabis shop, and where the retail shops can be located.

The dispensaries cannot be within a block (100 meters) of schools and health care facilities, but each municipality has the ability to can impose stricter restrictions.

“Final licensing isn’t given without a business licence from a municipality. That’s one of the final requirements that need to be in place: the city or community municipality needs to be supportive of that business,” Hynes-Dawson said.

The Alberta government anticipates it will issue 250 cannabis licences in the first year of legalization.