A city that struggles with alcoholism is divided over the idea of opening a private liquor store.
Prince Albert is one of 12 areas the province sees as “underserved” with alcohol retailing.
The Sask. Liquor and Gaming Authority minister sent a letter to the City saying any proposed liquor outlet will be subject to public feedback.
But late last month, Prince Albert’s City Council said they don’t even want the option on the table, and voted to decline the province’s idea that the city is underserved with a letter in response to that from the SLGA minister.
Council cited multiple studies, saying they need to send a clear message about the current struggles with alcohol consumption.
“It’s accessibility and I think one of the reasons too that council instructed me,” said Mayor Greg Dionne, “is for a long time we’ve objected to offsales being open after the bar closes and we had proposed numerous times to the province that offsales should close an hour before the bars.”
Dionne says he is a bit more open to the idea, but gets what they’re saying.
“I do believe there’s opportunity here but at the same time council voted to have me write a letter to the province that we don’t think it’s a good idea, strictly because we’re working on an alcohol strategy,” he said.
Dionne notes that the province wants to consult – but that doesn’t mean the city has much say in the plan. He wants to open the discussion even further.
“I would like to see them close one of the existing liquor board stores and build a new one. But at the same time that one’s downtown so I also have an issue with if they build a new one, where is it gonna be located,” he said.
There are currently two liquor stores in Prince Albert – the downtown location normally closes at 6 p.m. and the South Hill location closes at 9 p.m.
On Tuesday, the local chamber CEO chipped in as well. Larry Fladager said when it comes to a business case for a private retailer, Prince Albert’s Chamber of Commerce is on board.
Fladager says he’s not ignoring the societal issues, though.
“We know that the social impacts of excess liquor consumption are quite serious, but at the same point there’s a strong business case for the addition of an additional liquor venue in our community. We’re not doing that at the expense of our social responsibility or our community safety but we do support it from a business case perspective in that it will create jobs,” he said.
In addition, Fladager said it opens up variety for consumers, and a higher-end feel for shoppers.
The province is in no rush for a private vendor to come in. It’s stated it plans to wait to expand the private retail system until after the spring election.