ADMINISTRATIVE REPORT

Date: November 6, 2000

Author/Local: P. Teichroeb/ 7545

RTS No. 1734

CC File No. 2614-20

P&E: December 14, 2000

TO:	Standing Committee on Planning & Environment
FROM:	Chief License Inspector
SUBJECT:	952 Granville Street - Pravda Enterprises Ltd. Partnership Class `C' Cabaret

RECOMMENDATIONS

A. THAT Council endorse the request by Pravda Enterprises Ltd. Partnership (Pravda Enterprises Ltd., General Partner) formerly Gilligan's Entertainment Inc., for a 130-seat Class `C' Cabaret at 952 Granville Street having previously considered the opinions of the area residents and business operators of the community resulting from the neighbourhood notification and subject to:

i) A Time-Limited Development Permit;

ii) A signed Operating/Good Neighbour Agreement for a new establishment which would include provisions to hold the seating capacity to 130 and limit the hours of operation on Sunday to 7:00 p.m. to 12:00 midnight, regardless of any change to regulations as a result of the Provincial Liquor License Regulations review;

iii) The permanent closure of the 124-seat Class `C' Cabaret located at 686 Powell Street including supporting legal documentation to ensure this existing liquor license is surrendered to the Liquor Control and Licensing Branch or transferred to 952 Granville Street by April 30, 2001.

B. THAT the property owner for 686 Powell Street be notified that Council will not support the issuance of a new Class `C' Cabaret liquor license at 686 Powell Street.

GENERAL MANAGER'S COMMENTS

The General Manager of Community Services RECOMMENDS approval of the foregoing.

COUNCIL POLICY

That the 700, 800 and 900 blocks of Granville Street be designated as the Theatre Row Entertainment District; and

That allowances be made in principle for a combined total of up to 1000 Class `A' (Hotel Pub or Lounge), Class `C' (Cabaret) and Class `D' (Neighbourhood Pub) liquor licensed seats on Theatre Row; and

That only proposals for Class 'C' liquor licenses, which result in a reduction of liquor seats in a residential area or area of significant concern be considered.

PURPOSE

This report seeks Council's approval for a 130-seat Class `C' Cabaret located at 952 Granville Street, subject to the closure or relocation of the 124-seat cabaret at 686 Powell Street.

BACKGROUND

On June 19, 1997, Council endorsed creating the Granville Street/Theatre Row Entertainment District and Liquor Policy for the Downtown Granville South area. Council passed, in principle, a plan allocating up to 1000 new liquor license seats to be distributed throughout the 700, 800 and 900 blocks of Granville Street. The report focussed on a policing strategy for each block, enforcement strategies, the creation of the new residential community in the Downtown South, preferences for having existing liquor license seats relocate from the surrounding residential areas to the Entertainment District and the process by which staff would screen the initial applicants for proposed establishments in the district.

On December 11, 1997, Council reviewed the results of a proposal call for applications for the Entertainment District and made minor changes to the Theatre Row Liquor Licensing Policy. Since this decision on the proposal call applications, staff has received a number of other applications for the Theatre Row Entertainment District. The majority of these applications have been for sites located on the 900 block of Granville Street, with some proposals on the 800 block and no applications for the 700 block.

On December 11, 1997, Council fully endorsed some of the applications from the original proposal call and gave support-in-principle approval to four other applications (a neighbourhood pub at 800 Granville Street, cabarets at 900 and 952 Granville Street and a neighbourhood pub at 950 Granville Street). The neighbourhood pub at 800 Granville Street completed the conditions of their support-in-principle approval and obtained their full endorsement approximately one year later (1998). The three remaining support-in-principle approvals (cabarets at 900 and 952 Granville Street and a neighbourhood pub at 950 Granville Street) are still outstanding.

DISCUSSION

A decision can now be made on the one support-in-principle application at 952 Granville Street, which required an equivalent reduction in Class `A' or `C' seats from a residential or high impact neighbourhood.

The applicant has secured the purchase of the 124-seat Class `C' Cabaret license located at 686 Powell Street in the Downtown Eastside area. This license would be surrendered, subject to the endorsement and issuance of the Class `C' Cabaret liquor license at 952 Granville Street which would fulfill the condition set by Council.

The provincial Class `C' Cabaret and Class `B' Dining Lounge licenses at 686 Powell Street are one of the few remaining grand-fathered dual liquor licenses left in the city. The applicant wishes to transfer these licenses to 952 Granville Street to allow the new cabaret to open during the daytime hours and to operate as a restaurant up to 7:00 p.m. Staff supports this concept as it would help to maintain the daytime business and entertainment activity on Granville Street.

Preliminary indications from the Liquor Control & Licensing Branch are that it might be possible to transfer these grand-fathered liquor licenses to 952 Granville Street.

CONCLUSION

Staff recommends that the support-in-principle approach for a Class `C' Cabaret at 952 Granville Street be endorsed by Council, subject to the surrender or relocation of the existing Class `B' and Class `C' license at 686 Powell Street as outlined in this report.

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