Good weed at a good price on Okanagan Indian Band land isn’t on the chopping block, yet, but the future could depend on how members vote next week.

The band is holding a referendum on whether to authorize cannabis dispensaries and cannabis production on OKIB reserve lands. The vote is being held at Head of the Lake Hall from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Nov. 17, and it’s just for band members.

Whether members want production facilities and dispensaries have been split into two different questions, so members can vote on each individually.

The vote won’t close down shops or production facilities immediately, it’s meant to give members an opportunity to voice their opinion and help guide cannabis policy.

“The purpose of the referendum is to receive input from Membership for Council’s consideration. It is not a vote on individual businesses or operators, nor is it intended to determine the immediate closure or approval of any particular operation,” the OKIB said in an email statement.

The stores on “The Green Mile”, a well-known stretch of Westside Road on OKIB land, aren’t going to automatically shut down based on the referendum.

The band said the Chief and Council will have the final say on whether to act on the outcome of the referendum.

After legalization back in 2019, the band put in a cannabis bylaw, and it said that the industry has changed since then.

“Since this time, the federal and provincial regulatory schemes, along with the market, have matured. OKIB wants to provide the opportunity for community input to ensure that all voices are heard on whether OKIB’s current Cannabis Control Law reflects Membership’s current views,” the band said.

Under the current bylaws a dispensary or cannabis production facility needs to be at least 51 per cent owned by a member of the OKIB, either directly or indirectly.

The band didn’t say if the referendum was related to the raids on cannabis shops on reserve land.

In October 2024 the RCMP raided numerous shops along “The Green Mile”, but many reopened shortly after. After the raids, iNFOnews.ca obtained a letter that explained how some members of the Okanagan Indian Band wanted any unlicensed cannabis stores shut down and replaced by a Band-owned store.

Band councillors at the time requested help enforcing cannabis laws months before the raid, according to the letter.

Pot shops on reserve land have caused controversies for years. In 2022 a group of cannabis stores in the Okanagan and Shuswap launched a $40 million legal case against the province over weed stores operating on First Nations reserves.

The OKIB held information sessions for members about what the referendum means and the implications.

“OKIB’s priority is to ensure that Members have an opportunity to make an informed decision and that the input provided through the referendum helps guide the future of cannabis activities on OKIB lands,” the band said.