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Prince Albert, Sask., looking at limiting alcohol sales hours to reduce crime

Prince Albert is looking for ways that they can reduce the number of alcohol related crimes. City officials say the bylaw would allow the city to see if there is a connection between crime rates and alcohol consumption.

If passed, bylaw would limit alcohol sales to between 10 a.m. and 11 p.m.

Darla Ponace · CBC News ·
A picture of a white hotel on the corner of an intersection.
A drive-thru liquor outlet at the National Hotel in Prince Albert. (Google Streetview)

Prince Albert, Sask., is considering a bylaw that would reduce the hours of alcohol sales within city limits. 

Mayor Greg Dionne said that the new liquor bylaw would reduce alcohol-related crimes, including domestic violence. 

"When you have a city like ours where we have a problem with violence related to alcohol, with domestics that involve children, we have to do something," Dionne said.

"We just can't sit with our eyes closed and let our community suffer."

City council's executive committee voted unanimously in favour of limiting alcohol sales to the hours of 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. Dionne said it will now go to city council on Jan. 22 for final approval. After that the city would draft the bylaw, and it would take about another month to get through three readings before becoming law.

In April 2023, the Government of Saskatchewan amended section 49 of the Alcohol Control Amendment Regulations to give municipalities discretion to pass bylaws reducing the hours of operation for permitted establishments, among other changes.

La Ronge, Sask., passed a bylaw in 2023 that limited alcohol sales to 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.

"Half of our arrests are related to alcohol and so we have decided to take alcohol on, similar to La Ronge," Dionne said.

"Whether [the bylaw] is the answer or not, we don't know, but we're willing to try it and so we're going to take it head on."

Brian Howell, a board member for the Prince Albert Community Alcohol Strategy Steering Committee (CASSC), said he is happy with the city's commitment to reducing the harm caused by alcohol.

"I think there's a level of drinking that goes on within our community that maybe people really aren't aware of and that is made worse by the continuous availability of alcohol," Howell said. 

"I think this is a positive step."

A city report listed some concerns from retailers including:

  • An expected drop in revenue, since 40 percent of their sales are after 11 p.m.
  • A loss of tax revenue for the city since people may go elsewhere to get alcohol.
  • People who create problems because of alcohol still doing it during the business hours when alcohol can still be sold.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Darla Ponace

Darla Ponace is a Saulteaux woman from Zagime Anishinabek First Nations. She started as an associate producer in the Indigenous Pathways program at CBC. She is currently working with CBC Saskatchewan. You can email her at [email protected] with story ideas.

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