Municipal Interests

in Liquor Licensing

Liquor Licensing Issues Task Force

October 30, 2015

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| Timeline of Events

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• City Council approved a Members Motion to “protect communities and help small business by improving the licensing of bars and restaurants”

• City Council received a report from Legal Services regarding AGCO communication

• Requested ML&S to report back with options to deal with issues arising from premises with liquor sales licences

• City Council requested input from the working group to develop better compliance with City by-laws regarding restaurants, bars and entertainment establishments as per motion from Dec. 2013

Dec.

2013

Apr.

2014

Jul.

2014

| Timeline of Events

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Feb.

2015

• ML&S reported to the Licensing and Standards

Committee and City Council with three reports:

o Municipal Interests in Liquor Licensing

o Municipal Interests in Liquor Licensing - Recent

Conditions Placed on New Licences

o Establishment of Task Force on Liquor Licensing

Issues

• City Council established a Task Force on Liquor

Licensing Issues

Mar.

2015

• City Council appointed 6 Members to the Task

Force for a term of office until December 31, 2016

and until successors are appointed

| Background

Task Force Mandate

To provide advice to staff on…

a) the City's role in liquor licensing

b) issues associated with operating restaurants, bars

and entertainment establishments with respect to

liquor licensing and alcohol-related matters

c) solutions that mitigate community nuisance concerns

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• 8,000 (approx.) eating establishments in Toronto

• 4,200 (approx.) of these establishments are licenced by

the AGCO

• These establishments are a significant component of

Toronto's economy

• Nuisance issues from these establishments are creating

increased friction with the communities in which they are

located

| Context

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Nightclubs and Eating Establishments

- Complaints received by ML&S-

Year NightclubsEating

Establishments

2012 124 504

2013 103 554

2014 115 700

2015* 86 716

* as of October 2015

Common ML&S Complaints

Noise (72%)

Operating without a Licence / Nightclub Licence (13%) 6

• Venues licenced as restaurants and operating as bars or

nightclubs (“hybrids”) operating in areas that adjoin stable

residential areas

• Proactively determining policing levels, with “hybrid” bar/

nightclubs operating beyond areas where traditional

nightclubs are permitted

• The provision of entertainment is driven by consumer/social

demand; “hybrids” are a function of strong demand

| Challenges to addressing community nuisance

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• Moving patrons quickly out of centralized entertainment

areas following closing time:

o access to late-night rapid transit is limited; and

o late-night “rush hour” congestion limits the ability of ground

transportation vehicles to move quickly

• Smoking restrictions are resulting in increased noise levels

and near adjacent residential areas

• Ashtrays are prohibited where smoking is prohibited, which

also leads to increased litter on sidewalks and near

residential areas

• Managing anti-social and disorderly behaviour through

business licensing and regulation

| Challenges to addressing community nuisance

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| Approach to Address Challenges

• Establish a governance model to inform policy

and procedural improvements

• Identify opportunities to address community

nuisance issues:o Short-term

o Medium / long-term initiatives

• Work with Key Partners:o Toronto Police Service

o Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario; and

o Industry stakeholders

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| Governance Model

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| Regulatory Working Group

ObjectiveTo identify policy and/or legislative gaps to ensure community nuisance

issues are appropriately addressed.

4 meetings to-date 11

Membership

ML&S AGCO

Toronto Building Toronto Police

Legal OPP

City Clerk

| Hospitality Working Group

ObjectiveTo discuss issues related to restaurants, bars and entertainment

establishments, such as the process for obtaining liquor licences, other

alcohol-related matters and the impacts on the neighbourhoods where

they locate.

Membership

ML&S AGCO

Legal Toronto Police

City Planning ORHMA

Toronto Building Economic Development

Public Health TABIA

Entertainment Industry Reps

124 meetings to-date

| Work Plan

Examine opportunities to address

community nuisance through the

following areas of focus

1. Enforcement

2. Process

3. Regulation

4. Education13

Community nuisance concerns are addressed through Provincial

and Municipal systems of enforcement

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ML&S Enforces…

Examples of Violations:

• Noise that disturbs residents

• Business operating without a license

• Business not operating in accordance

with their licence or conditions

Toronto Municipal Code

Ch. 591, Noise

Ch. 545, Business Licensing

Ch. 548, Littering and Dumping

Ch. 841, Waste Collection

Ch. 313, Boulevard Cafes

Ch. 629, Property Standards

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Toronto Police Service enforces…

Examples of Violations:

• Fighting

• Public drunkenness

• Disorderly behaviour

• Narcotics

Criminal Code

Controlled Drugs &

Substances Act

City By-laws

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OPP / AGCO Enforces…

Examples of Violations:

• Serving minors

• Over-crowding

• Intoxication

• Disorderly behaviour

Liquor licence Act

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Information Sharing

Toronto Police reports are shared with AGCO to aid

inspections (1000+ year-to-date)

AGCO provides ML&S with liquor licence revocation/

cancelation list to aid inspections and/or respond to

noise complaints

Tribunal reports submitted by ML&S use information

provided by Toronto Police

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Information Sharing cont.

MLS advises AGCO of convictions resulting from charges

laid under municipal bylaws

MLS advises AGCO of Toronto Licensing Tribunal

outcomes (e.g. licence revocation, refusing to issue a

licence, and/or conditions placed on municipal licences)

If a Toronto Licensing Tribunal decision relates to an entity

that is licenced or registered by the AGCO, the decision is

added to the AGCO master file for that establishment

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Shared information can be used by AGCO for risk-based

licensing reviews

Coordination

ML&S, AGCO and TPS hold quarterly meetings to review

“Top 10” problem establishments

Strategies for coordinated inspections are developed

Joint inspections with TPS, AGCO, M&LS and other City

of Toronto staff are held to ensure compliance with all

appropriate legislation that each agency/department is

responsible for

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TPS has a dedicated liaison officer who coordinates with

AGCO (existing process) and ML&S (new process)

Coordination cont.

Meetings are held with large capacity night club

managers/ owners to assess potential risks with

scheduled events identify proper security staffing levels

and an appropriate police presence

Trends, issues, criminality, and community complaints

discussed openly in order to work collaboratively and

bring them into compliance

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New Initiatives

• Relocating CCTV cameras in locations where they are no

longer effective to areas of greater need

• Ongoing consultation lead by TPS 14 Division with

community members, local City councillors, and ML&S

• Traffic Management – to help improve late night/early

morning traffic flow

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| Work Plan

Examine opportunities to address

community nuisance through the

following areas of focus

1. Enforcement

2.Process

3. Regulation

4. Education23

Tasks

• Review the City's process/procedures to deal with

problem establishments

• Review AGCO/City of Toronto clearance processes to

identify “gaps” and potential service enhancements:

o New liquor licence applications

o Scope of the municipal clearance process

o Transfer of liquor licences

o Applications for increased capacity, outside service, etc.

o Special Occasion Permits (SOPs)

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Liquor Licence Applications

All new/increase applications are emailed to City of

Toronto by the AGCO directly for advanced notice

Toronto is the only municipality that has this

arrangement with AGCO

• City Clerk circulates all new applications to City

Councillors and Toronto Police

• Use Compliance Letters to put specific municipal

conditions on a licencee

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Current Municipal Clearance Process

• Municipal Clearance is required for a new Liquor Sales

licence

• Documentation is circulated to Fire Services (FS), Toronto

Building (TB) and Public Health (PH) for inspections

o Municipal Clearance issues include zoning compliance; seating capacity,

occupancy and fire safety; and food preparation facilities

• Letters of approval or denial from FS, TB and PH are provided

to the AGCO

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Licence Transfers

• Liquor sales licences are issued to individuals, business

partnerships or corporations, for operation at a specific location

• Section 17 of the Liquor Licence Act (LLA) provides for transfer of a

licence (i.e. it doesn’t expire upon the sale of a business)

• Licence transfers must be approved by the AGCO before the

change is made

• AGCO performs due diligence on all transfer applicants to ensure

eligibility of new application, consistent with the LLA

• In the event a licence transferee does not meet the requirements,

the Registrar can issue an Notice of Proposal to refuse the transfer

• Currently Notice of Transfers are not provided to municipalities27

Special Occasion Permits (SOP’s)

• An SOP is needed any time alcohol is offered for sale or served

anywhere other than in a licenced establishment or a private

place

• For outdoor events, the permit holder must write to the local

municipality, police, and fire and health departments notifying

them of the event

• 30 days notification to the municipality ( <5000 people / day)

• 60 days notification to the municipality (>5000 people / day)

• Risk considerations can relate to an applicant and/or the event

itself28

SOP’s and Letter of Municipal Significance

• For a “Public Event” SOP, the municipality must designate it as

“Municipally Significant”

• Information required to request a “Municipal Significance” letter:

o Statement that the request is for an Event of Municipal Significance

o The name of the Event

o The exact address or location of the Event

o The purpose of the Event

o The date(s) of the Event

o The times the Event begins and ends

o Name, address and telephone number

• Applications are considered by Community Council

• A letter from the local Community Council declaring that the event is

an "Event of Municipal Significance“ is required as part of the AGCO

application 29

SOP’s, Risk, and Conditions

• The AGCO may impose conditions on an SOP to mitigate

identified risks to public safety or the public interest

• Risk considerations can relate to an applicant and/or the

event itself

• Examples include:

o restricting hours of alcohol service

o limiting access to the event by minors, or

o Increased security requirement

Information-sharing between AGCO and ML&S can help

identify potential risks for events and for applicants30

| Work Plan

Examine opportunities to address

community nuisance through the

following areas of focus

1. Enforcement

2. Process

3.Regulation

4. Education31

Tasks

Identify opportunities to address community nuisance

impacts through municipal regulation:

1. Review of Toronto Municipal Code

• Chapter 545, Licensing

• Chapter 591, Noise

• Chapter 313, Boulevard Cafes

• Chapter 709, Smoking

2. Review of Land Use Zoning tools

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Chapter 545, Licensing (on-going review)

Potential opportunities to address nuisance issues

through business licensing:

1. Attaching conditions to a business licence

o E.g. Food Service shall be available until time of closing

o E.g. Patrons awaiting seating or service must be accommodated

inside the premises.

2. Considering a risk-based approach to the licensing of

Eating Establishments

3. Considering new business licensing categories33

Chapter 591, Noise (on-going review)

Potential opportunities to address nuisance issues

through the Noise By-law Review:

1. Enhancing enforcement and compliance by:

o Increased fines and/or penalties

o Making the By-law easier to interpret, understand, and

enforce

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Chapter 313, Boulevard Cafes (on-going review)

Potential opportunities to address nuisance noise

through the Boulevard Café By-law Review:

1. Examining hours of operation

• 11:00 p.m. closing, local/residential streets

• 12:00 a.m. closing, commercial/main streets

o currently there is no closing time specified in the By-law

for sidewalk cafes that are not located on

local/residential streets

• operating hours can also be determined on a case-by-case

basis by Community Council 35

Chapter 709, Smoking

Examine opportunities to address littering of cig. butts:

• MC709, Smoking, prohibits ashtrays in areas where smoking is

prohibited

• Smoking is not prohibited on city sidewalk’s

• Examine means of locating ashtrays on city sidewalk’s /

sidewalk infrastructure

o E.g. review of MC 743, Streets and Sidewalks

o E.g. review of MC 548, Littering & Dumping

o E.g. “Butt Can” projects (BIA initiatives)

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Zoning and Land Use Controls

The following initiatives have been implemented to help

address community nuisance:

Zoning By-law

• Min. separation distance between Residential Zones and

Outdoor Patios located on private property:

o Outdoor patios must be set back min. 30 m from a lot in a Residential

or Residential Apartment Zone

o If located above the first storey of a building, the outdoor patio must be

min. 40 m from a lot in a Residential or Residential Apartment Zone

• Nightclubs are not permitted to abut Residential Zones37

Zoning and Land Use Controls (cont.)

The following initiatives have been implemented to help

address community nuisance:

Area-Specific zoning by-law amendments

• Limit the size and number of restaurants per building

• Restrict restaurants to the ground floor

The impact of the Queen St West restaurant

concentration By-law will be reviewed in Q3 2017

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| Work Plan

Examine opportunities to address

community nuisance through the

following areas of focus

1. Enforcement

2. Process

3. Regulation

4.Education39

AGCO

launched an online educational webinar in 2015 for Special

Occasion Permits focusing on large public events and street

festivals

AGCO held 5 “You and Liquor Laws” seminars in 2015 as part

of an educational program for liquor sales licencees in the City

of Toronto

Inter-Divisional and Partners

Participation in the Food and Beverage Market Show and

Restaurants Canada Show (Public Health)

Entertainment industry representatives share information with

stakeholders and facilitate timely responses to city initiatives40

Best Bar None

BBN is an international accreditation and award

licencee program aimed at improving liquor service

standards

Best Bar None (BBN) program has been implemented

in the Entertainment District

Implementation of the BBN program is being led by

ORHMA

BBN is supported and endorsed by the AGCO

Increasing enrolment of BBN-accredited operators will

help grow responsible liquor licencee operations41

Good Neighbour Policy

Developed a draft Good Neighbour Policy for bar,

restaurant and nightclub operators

A Good Neighbour Policy combines regulatory

responsibilities and “good-will” commitments

It signals to regulators, patrons and surrounding

neighbours that the permit holder is committed to

operate as a good neighbour and to make a positive

addition to the neighbourhood.

The Good Neighbour Policy promotes industry

compliance and responsible liquor licencee operations42

The Good Neighbour Policy concept has been endorsed

in Toronto by:

o AGCO

o Toronto Police Service

o ORHMA;

o BIA’s; and

o other industry stakeholders

Industry partners can assist in communication and

promotion of the policy to their members:

o website updates

o mail-outs43

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Education Opportunities

• Community and Industry consultation is required to

inform any potential policy amendments

• Joint Town Hall meetings (AGCO, ML&S, TPS etc.) are

an opportunity to meet face-to-face to educate the

public on what each agency does and to hear concerns

/ comments from the public.

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Town Halls could be conducted in specific

neighbourhoods, as determined by the Task Force

1. Enforcement • Information Sharing

• Coordinated inspections

• Relocate CCTV

• Traffic Management

• Emerging issues (Bottle Service/ Party Busses/ Move from Big Box clubs to

Restaurants operating as Nightclubs)

2. Process • Review the City’s process/procedures to deal with problem establishments

• Review ACGO/City of Toronto clearance processes

• New, expanded, request for change in conditions and transfers

• Special Occasion Permits

• Street Festivals

• The Music Industry

| Work Plan Summary

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3. Regulation • Review Toronto Municipal Code – Operation of eating establishments and

night clubs

• Review opportunities for different Licence classes

• Explore opportunity to place conditions on a Business Licence

• Harmonize Boulevard Café and Marketing By-laws

• Review Risk Based Business Licensing

• Understand emerging issues (Day Spas, Coffee Shops, Hair Salons ability to

obtain a Liquor Licence

4. Education• Develop a coordinated Public Education Campaign

• Promote the Good Neighbour Policy & Best Bar None program

• Review Industry Best Practices

• The Role of the Event Organizer

• Community Consultation / Joint Town Halls

| Work Plan Summary (Cont.)

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The End

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