Plan to put daycare next to pub raises eyebrows
The owner of a northwest pub and some of its customers are voicing concerns about a daycare moving in next door.
While denizens of Stavros Pizza and Sports Bar at 7750 Ranchview Dr. N.W. are worried the location might not be in the kids’ best interests, a partner in the daycare said she’s not concerned.
“There haven’t been any concerns raised by the city,” said a woman who’d only give her name as Kim, one of the people behind Monkey Ville Daycare.
But Stavros co-owner Woz Haymour said news of their new neighbour raised eyebrows among him and his customers.
He said he spoke with a Monkey Ville manager after seeing the space a few steps away from his pub being renovated to make way for the daycare.
“She asked us in the beginning if we’re fine with that,” said Haymour.
“If they don’t get in our way, we’re fine with that.”
But Haymour said he is a little uncomfortable having his licensed establishment being so close to a kids’ care centre whose door would be in close proximity to where his smoking patrons ply their habit.
“It’s a bit of a sticky situation. It just seems weird,” said Haymour, whose pub has been in business at the location since 1995.
“Some of our customers are saying ‘wow, a daycare next to a bar — that’s not right.’ ”
Even so, he said the pub’s patrons are consistently well-behaved, with nearly all of them regulars.
Monkey Ville’s Kim, who also runs daycares in B.C.’s Lower Mainland, said she did have some initial concerns about the location but those have been allayed.
“We’re not connected to the other (pub) building — there’s a staircase in between us so that’s why the city gave its approval,” she said.
“We’re working closely with the city and complying with everything we have to do.”
She said it’s not yet clear when the daycare will open or how many children will be attending it.
But Kim said the children will be gone by 5:30 p.m. and the centre will only operate on weekdays.
“It won’t be at any peak times at the pub,” she said.
A spokesperson for the city’s planning department didn’t return calls by press time on Tuesday.