1 a.m. closing asking for trouble, city council told

City of Kelowna staff oppose brewery’s request to extend hours

A downtown Kelowna brewery should not have its hours of operation extended to 1 a.m., city council will hear Oct. 9.

Municipal planners oppose an application by the owners of Craft Beer Market for the longer hours, saying the potential for bothersome noise is too great.

“The late-night operations have potential to generate significant noise and dispersal issues at closing time that could conflict with nearby residences, and have an increased negative impact to the surrounding community,” reads part of a staff report to council.

Currently, Craft has a closing time of midnight for both its indoor restaurant (capacity 227 people) and its rooftop patio (capacity 238 people).

The company wants to maintain the midnight closure for the patio but keep the indoor restaurant open until 1 a.m.

A final decision on Craft’s request for longer hours rests with provincial liquor licensing officials.

But city council is being asked for a recommendation of support or opposition by the government since the proposed hours extend beyond midnight.

City officials and Kelowna RCMP also say Craft’s owners are not willing to incorporate some added security measures that are typically asked of similar businesses operating past midnight.

Craft opened earlier this year in a renovated building that used to house the Paramount Theatre. It operates under a food-primary licence, in which the serving of alcohol is supposed to be secondary to the serving of food.

But city planners say that given Craft’s size and business model, it should follow requirements typically required of liquor-primary establishments.