Put a cork in ByWard Market bar sprawl, councillor asks AGCO
Mathieu Fleury urging province to consider tighter restrictions on liquor licences issued to restaurants
The city councillor who represents Ottawa's ByWard Market is appealing to the province to limit serving hours and prevent the area from becoming little more than a hotspot for late-night partiers.
Coun. Mathieu Fleury worries the proliferation of bars will squeeze retailers out of the popular downtown destination, creating an unsafe environment at night.
"You don't want a corridor where nothing is going on in the daytime," Fleury said.
Clarence Street in particular has become "nightclub row," he said.
The city has been trying to limit the number of bars and nightclubs in the area for years, but any solution seems to be outside the municipality's reach, he said.
Restaurants morphing into bars
Part of the problem is that restaurants are issued the same licence as bars by the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO), leading them to lean on alcohol sales after dinner hours.
While licensed restaurants are allowed to serve liquor, it can't be their primary business. However the distinction is so blurry some Ontario cities have given up trying to differentiate. In Toronto and Hamilton, bars and restaurants are zoned as one and the same.
Ten restaurants in the ByWard Market market are currently under investigation for breaking the rules, but catching them in the act is tricky.
Even if bylaw officers find the restaurants relying on liquor sales, infractions can take years to process, and the establishments remain open in the meantime.
Fleury wants the AGCO to consider slapping restrictions on liquor licences issued to restaurants, including limited serving hours that would prevent them from transforming into bars in the wee hours.
Don't blame restaurants
People in the restaurant industry say there's good reason to stay open late.
"We found that there was a hole in the market," said Eleanor Quesnel, event coordinator for Social, which has operated as a restaurant and lounge for 18 years.
The restaurant transforms into a lounge with a DJ and stays open until until 2 a.m. Friday and Saturday nights.
"People want to stay out later and have drinks, but not necessarily in a bar or club atmosphere," Quesnel said.
Even if the AGCO sides with Fleury, it won't save retail in the market, said restaurateur Steve Monuk, a partner in several York Street restaurants including Sens House and Lowertown Brewery. He said he tried to rent retail space as a landlord, but found it difficult.
"Retail is very hard in brick and mortar stores now," he said.