This round is on us, says CBS council

By Craig Westcott

CBS council is changing its Town Plan and development regulations to make it easier for personal use businesses such as hair salons and spas to serve alcohol on premises, if they are located in Residential Medium Density zones.
The move was announced at the March 4 meeting of council by way of councillor-at-large Rex Hillier putting forward a motion to amend the Urban and Rural Planning Act.
In most cases such changes come at the request of a specific business that is applying for an amendment in order to allow liquor to be served on premises, but in this instance the Town itself is seeking the change and will pay the associated application fee. The amendment has to be approved by the Province.
“We’ve found ourselves in a couple of instances where we’ve had businesses in a nonconforming use situation looking to serve alcohol at special events and activities within those operations and rather than taking each one and working through the process, we’re suggesting that we would allow these things to take place as ancillary activities associated with these businesses,” said Hillier. “We’re going to deal with the broad picture rather than picking each one individually.”
Mayor Darrin Bent said council is trying to clear up the application process “kind of once and for all and see how it goes.”