PoCo looks to loosen liquor rules; become more hospitable

Port Coquitlam residents may soon have a chance to hear the music play as the city looks to end its prohibition on cabarets.

Allowing nightclubs to operate is one of several changes being considered by the city following council’s unanimous support for new rules Tuesday.

The changes, which would loosen the regulations around special event liquor licences as well as video game arcades, stem from one question, according to Mayor Brad West: “Does this still make sense?”

Some of the rules seemed to originate when the city was: “cracking down on unruly teenagers in the 1970s and ‘80s who were trying to use arcade games . . . or dance,” West said.

The city’s prohibition on dance clubs, or cabarets, came at a time when revellers leaving Rumours nightclub tended to get into fights and damage property, said Coun. Darrell Penner, acknowledging that times have changed.

Restrictions on pool halls were harder to explain, Penner added.

“They were never really a problem that I could ever tell, but they’re always associated with something else, and same thing with video arcades,” he said.

Arcades were in a class of prohibited uses alongside escort services, massage parlours, and pawnshops.

The city previously restricted the size of dance floors to: “combat a trend” of underground dance clubs.

“This is no longer a relevant concern,” according to a city staff report.

Dance floors in licensed establishments were previously capped at 323 square feet or 20 percent of the total floor area.

Coun. Steve Darling supported the change.

“When I want to get my bump and grind on, I like a bigger dance floor,” he said.

The ultimate aim is to persuade businesses that Port Coquitlam is a place to: “put down roots,” West said.

The new rules would allow for a variety of uses including pool halls, trampoline parks, and escape rooms in commercial zones, according to a city staff report. While the city is open to considering a new dance club or dinner theatre, the final decision would rest with council.

Proposed rule changes would also allow city staff to handle minor applications to extend a pub patio or adjust serving hours during a special event.

A more impactful change, such as a new pub or liquor store, would still need to come to council.

The proposed changes were spurred by a hospitality roundtable chaired by West and including representatives from city pubs, restaurants, bakeries, and coffee shops, as well as members of the Tri-Cities Chamber of Commerce and the PoCo BIA.

Members of the roundtable noted “increasingly long review times” from B.C. Liquor and Cannabis Regulation Branch, according to a staff report.

Moving forward, council’s focus may be on advocacy, according to West.

“We have to try and get the province to come to its senses,” he said. “Which I know is no small feat.”