Spillover no thrill

Local News

Posted By RAYMOND BOWE, BARRIE EXAMINER

Updated 1 hour ago

More than a dozen downtown Barrie bars and nightclubs can hold just shy of 6,200 people, which the Downtown Neighbourhood Association says is a lot of patrons spilling out onto the street at closing time.

It's not likely that every establishment would be filled to capacity on any given night, but it provides a snapshot of the crowds that can be found downtown in the wee hours of a weekend morning.

The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario says it's not up to them to decide how many bars are located within a certain area, but rather, the municipality.

"The AGCO is not the determinant of (bar)concentration," said spokesperson Lisa Murray, adding that responsibility falls on the municipality, which issues business licences and oversees zoning. "That is something that belongs to the community and the municipality ... as opposed to the AGCO saying, 'You have too many here and not enough there'."

Barrie's Downtown Neighbourhood Association has asked city council for a six-month ban on any new or expanded bars to allow for public debate. The group wants a task force struck -- including citizens, police, business owners, licensing and regulatory body officials, city officials and staff -- to develop a plan of action.

Association member Mike Fox says the group isn't necessarily against more bars in the city centre.

"Not adding more bars will not solve the problems that are already present,"Fox said. "What is an entertainment district supposed to look like?What's Dunlop Street supposed to look like? I envision fine-dining and theatre and some respectable nightlife. I didn't envision thousands of people being over-served and dumped into the street at two o'clock in the morning.

"We believe we've passed that saturation (point), based on the ability to control the (bars) already there," Fox added.

Crowd control is key, Fox said, "so that our police aren't running off their feet trying to subdue thousands of well-lubricated individuals."

Fox hopes the moratorium will give the city a chance to fix what's happening.

"We need to look at the downtown and see what it's going to take to make ita livable environment with a quality of life that's good for everyone in the area," he said.

Although Fox lives west of the FivePoints, he said "life is not bearable" for association members living east of Bayfield Street.

"A popular quote with some of our membersis they live one beer from downtown, which means Saturday morning it's(their) job to clean up the broken bottles."

When the AGCO issues a liquor licence, Murray said compliance letters from fire, building and health officials are crucial, but the commission also looks elsewhere before making a final decision.

"We want to make sure an establishment has met all of the municipal requirements," she said."Certainly, if there is an objection from the city council, that does carry weight with the board in terms of its decision."

"There is a bit of finger-pointing back and forth," Fox said. "Any licence that comes down, most of the things that are concerns to us are not impacted in whether or not a licence is approved."

Before a licence is granted, the public can submit complaints or concerns to the AGCO, the most common being noise, Murray said.

One application that is pending with the AGCO is the Port of Barrie, which was smoked out by the Five Points fire in 2007. The commission has received five objections, Murray said. The deadline for public comment is Friday.

The Downtown Neighbourhood Association is looking at Kitchener and problems it faced about 10 years ago with its bar scene.

"Itwas exactly the same situation we are in, with too many bars and not enough control," Fox said, noting Kitchener formed its own liquor licence review committee.

While debate over the Barrie's bar scene is nothing new, it has become a hot topic in the last two weeks after a man was killed north of the Five Points right around bar closing time.

Barrie police are treating the fatal stabbing of 24-year-old Innisfil resident Troy Lush as a "rare and unfortunate incident" that could have happened anywhere in the city. Police say a fight broke out Aug. 14 between four men as the bars closed around 2 a.m.

rbowe@thebarrieexaminer.com twitter.com/Raymond Bowe