An apparently forgotten rule has thrown a wrench into B.C.'s plans to let grocery stores to sell booze.
The rule on the books makes it illegal for a new liquor store to open up within a kilometre of an existing one – a zone where many B.C. grocery stores find themselves.
“That’s where most B.C. liquor stores would choose to locate,” said Stephen Harris of the B.C. Private Liquor Store Association. “And it makes perfect sense. That’s where the traffic volume is – beside grocery stores.”
A survey by the Vancouver Sun found only two grocery stores – both Choices Markets – outside the one-kilometre zones surrounding existing liquor stores in the City of Vancouver.
But it’s clear that many suburban stores face the same problem, usually across a mall parking lot from a wine store, such as the Steveston Save on Foods.
There are some stores in more rural areas that do not have the problem that are still looking forward to selling liquor, such as Red Barn Market on Vancouver Island.
“Our customers are telling us they want the convenience,” said Russ Benwell, a Red Barn Market owner.
The only option now for grocery stores within the one-kilometre zones would be to buy out the existing liquor store – an option that would be expensive and unlikely, said NDP critic Shane Simpson.
“A significant-sized store would be well over a million dollars today,” Simpson said.
And the option to buy out would leave the consumer with the same choice – or less.
“This was supposed to be a consumer convenience,” said Bruce Cran of the Consumers Association of Canada.
The private liquor stores are saved the problem of competing with a nearby big box store.
The B.C. government said all of the laws could still change.
