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Sentinel
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Northern
www.northernsentinel.com
Volume 61 No. 27
Wednesday, July 8, 2015
1.30 INCLUDES TAX
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Supper club wins The Kitimat Community Supper Club work their way through onlookers in the Canada Day Parade. The club earned first place among the floats for their festively decorated float which was covered with balloons. More photos from Canada Day on page 8. Cameron Orr
Kitimat opts against setting distances The owner of two Kitimat liquor stores says the government’s
new direction of offering in-store wine sales in grocery stores is un-
GasLink inks deals with FNS.
/page 3 Car at Lakelse takes a dive.
/page 5 PM477761
fair to the small business community. To that end Jim Thom, owner of Wee Geordies and Big Jim’s in City Centre Mall, has written to Kitimat Council to endorse restrictions on the government’s plans. Thom provided council with a copy of a letter from the Alliance of Beverage Licensees, which endorsed a one kilometre buffer rule for future alcohol retailers, notably for grocery stores which win auctions from the province to sell wine, which are exempt from existing one kilometre distance rules. That would mean that, for instance, if SuperValu in Kitimat
wanted to sell wine in their store they could even though they are within one kilometre of the existing Big Jim’s Spirit Store. Kitimat Mayor Phil Germuth said council opted against advocating for such a buffer, saying competition is healthy for business. “We believe in free enterprise, and I believe competition is good for business, it drives your service better. So all council did with that one was we received it for information,” he said, adding that if the province seeks comment on these plans in the future council may at that time. Thom says council missed the opportunity to exert some control
With B.C.’s new auction licence program grocery stores could sell wine even if they’re near existing liquor stores. over the future of liquor sale locations in Kitimat. “Kamloops has already done it, it’s basically a no-brainer,” he said. “As of right now the city would have no say in ‘em. [liquor licence locations]” He doesn’t agree that the issue is a sim-
ple ‘competition is good’ argument. “Competition is fine and dandy,” he said, but added if they put wines in liquor stores it will be the cheapest ones on the shelves which will hurt B.C.’s wine industry.” “This affects the government liquor store
also,” he added. Ultimately he says the “city has missed a big chance.” In June the City of Kamloops opted to adopt the one kilometre distance rule after a vote by their council, saying it was to help the B.C. wine industry, reports CFJCTV news.