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“The first week was insane,” said Franck Bouilhol, owner of FanFan Patisserie, which is around the corner from the Old Strathcona location of Nova Cannabis.

After the initial rush in October that saw people stand in line for hours, things slowed down.

Bouilhol said Nova’s presence has even sent some new business his way when people find their way into his bakery.

“It brings a different crowd, I find,” he said. “Most of them are very open-minded. They want to try new stuff.”

A few doors down from Canna Cabana on 124 Street, All Sports Health clinic owner Lanny Jamieson said he hasn’t had cannabis consumers wander in looking to become new clients, but he said the new neighbour hasn’t really changed the area.

“It’s been pretty much business as usual around here,” Jamieson said.

He said there was a lineup on the first day, when the store wasn’t yet open, but that’s about it.

A staff member who answered the phone at Lasertext Digital Print and Copy Centre, which is next door to Elevate, a cannabis retailer on 118 Avenue and 144 Street, said their shared parking lot has become quite busy, but otherwise nothing has changed.

None of the businesses Postmedia spoke to Friday reported issues with people smoking near the stores.

With three stores open and selling cannabis, Ward 4 has the highest concentration in the city, but Coun. Aaron Paquette said he hasn’t heard about issues with any of the existing sites.

“I think it’s been a bit of a non-event,” Paquette said Friday. “People have been fairly respectful in terms of their public consumption, and on the plus side it’s more small business, it’s more employment.”