A 'sober bar' in Edmonton, Canada that has been a refuge for recovering alcoholics and addicts for years has been told by city officials that it must now get a liquor license if it wants to continue to allow patrons to smoke. But when they applied for a liquor license, they were turned down because they did not plan to actually serve alcohol.
The Keep it Simple Club in north-side Edmonton serves juice, soda and food to 300 members, who can also attend 12 step meetings in a back room. The club is like many "Alano Clubs" that provide an alternative for alcoholics who want to stay away from the temptation of alcohol-serving establishments.
But attendance at the bar has dropped since the city passed a new no-smoking law that allows smoking only in establishments that have a minors-prohibited liquor licence, according to the Edmonton Journal. Most recovering alcoholics smoke -- researchers believe as many as 75-90 percent of recovering alcoholics smoke.
The solution to their problem, the club owners have been told, is to get a liquor license, but the Alberta Gaming and Liquor Commission refused to issue them a licence because the refused to actually sell liquor. "They weren't looking for a liquor licence, they were looking for a smoking licence," said Alberta Gaming spokeswoman Marilyn Carlyle-Helms.
So what's the answer to this Catch-22 situation?
"If they say I have to serve a 12-pack, I will buy a 12-pack of beer, sell it for $5 a can, call all the media, stand in front of our sober club and pour it all out on the ground, just to show them how ridiculous it is," one of the club's owners said.
Ridiculous is right.
The Keep it Simple Club in north-side Edmonton serves juice, soda and food to 300 members, who can also attend 12 step meetings in a back room. The club is like many "Alano Clubs" that provide an alternative for alcoholics who want to stay away from the temptation of alcohol-serving establishments.
But attendance at the bar has dropped since the city passed a new no-smoking law that allows smoking only in establishments that have a minors-prohibited liquor licence, according to the Edmonton Journal. Most recovering alcoholics smoke -- researchers believe as many as 75-90 percent of recovering alcoholics smoke.
The solution to their problem, the club owners have been told, is to get a liquor license, but the Alberta Gaming and Liquor Commission refused to issue them a licence because the refused to actually sell liquor. "They weren't looking for a liquor licence, they were looking for a smoking licence," said Alberta Gaming spokeswoman Marilyn Carlyle-Helms.
So what's the answer to this Catch-22 situation?
"If they say I have to serve a 12-pack, I will buy a 12-pack of beer, sell it for $5 a can, call all the media, stand in front of our sober club and pour it all out on the ground, just to show them how ridiculous it is," one of the club's owners said.
Ridiculous is right.
