Editor's note: Please find the City Hall response at the end of this article.
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Management at Fanny's adult entertainment club are encouraged by the progressive thinking of North Bay City Council but are taken aback by the extreme measures taken at Monday's meeting to facilitate an exemption to the City's adult entertainment by-law that would allow the Capitol Centre to host an all-male show that falls under this category.
JP Cormier, general manager at Fanny's said, "We are glad the City is becoming a little more open-minded, but what about the (other) local establishment that's been a staple of North Bay for so long?"
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"We've been paying yearly licencing fees since 1997, and they just overruled the by-law without consultation because they felt like it."
Monday's motion to amend the by-law also involved first suspending Council rules so that the item could even be addressed. A two-thirds majority (that passed unanimously) was necessary to even allow discussion to proceed on the motion below:
"Whereas the City of North Bay's adult entertainment parlour by-law 208-1990 prohibits adult entertainment shows to be held at venues other than licenced adult entertainment parlours, and whereas the Capitol Centre is holding a show on Wednesday, March 29, 2017, which by definition falls under the adult entertainment parlour by-law, and whereas the Council of the City of North Bay is supportive of the Capitol Centre and the arts and entertainment contribution they make to the city, therefore be it resolved that the Council of the City of North Bay hereby directs staff to bring forward an amendment to adult entertainment by-law 208-1990 to provide a one-time exemption to the adult entertainment by-law to the Capitol Centre for the show entitled Thunder From Down Under...and further be it resolved that the legal department be directed to review the adult entertainment by-law to ensure that it is representative of current and modern practices."
Efforts to obtain comment and further clarification regarding the by-law exemption and licencing fees from representatives of the City were made Wednesday morning and were acknowledged by City staff. BayToday received notice that our inquiries had been forwarded to the City Solicitor, but no comment had been received as of the publication deadline.
Cormier agreed that the free advertising that the Capitol Centre has received for their show, because of the proposed exemption and subsequent media coverage, does help local business while noting that Fanny's is hosting their own all-male show, "no exemption needed including VIP dancing on November 27."
The support of local business is always welcome. But, the manner in which the rules were stretched to selectively favour and promote an entity that Council has openly endorsed, all the while having Capitol Centre board members involved in the vote has led to some confusion.
"We are surprised by how quickly, and easily the by-law that's been in place since 1990 could be exempted. It would have been nice for them to care how it affects us, or at the very least reach out to us," said Cormier.
The motion was brought forward by Coun. Mike Anthony who, like Mayor Al McDonald, is on the board of directors of the Capitol Centre.
It is common for the Mayor and Councillors to declare conflicts of interest when they have a vested interest in a matter before Council. In fact, during the same meeting Anthony noted his business relationship with a group making a public presentation, "for the sake of transparency."
Anthony did make mention of his relationship with the Capitol Centre while presenting his motion to Council, while adding, "They do need to sell every ticket they can."
The proactive measure on the Capitol Centre's behalf was described by Coun. Derek Shogren, who seconded the motion, as Council "exhibiting common sense."
Cormier says any future by-law amendment affects business at Fanny's as it opens the door for anyone to host an adult show. "We haven't called to complain as we feel the City does a pretty good job of enforcing the by-laws in place.
"It's just very surprising how quickly a rule can be changed that's been in place for almost 30 years, without consulting to see how it would affect local business in town.
"We've been locally-operated for 19 years," said Cormier, "and Fanny's is an attraction and destination that brings money to other businesses in the hospitality industry."
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Update from Peter Leckie, City Solicitor :
- Section 23 of By-law No.208-90, Being a By-law to License, Regulate and Prohibit in Certain Areas the Operation of Adult Entertainment Parlours, states “Notwithstanding subsection 110(7) of the Municipal Act, no adult entertainment parlour shall be operated in the downtown area described on Schedule “A” hereto.”
Schedule “A” sets out the Prohibited Area and states “All those lands and premises in the City of North Bay zoned as Commercial One (C1) or Commercial Two (C2) by North Bay Zoning By-la 28-90, as amended, which shall include the following lands:…”
The by-law goes on to provide, which I will not set out here, a metes and bounds description that delineates the area in question by a number of streets.
Mrs. Hillier, Manager of Planning Services adds:
“I have reviewed the City’s Zoning By-law 2015-30 with respect to Adult Entertainment Parlours. The provisions of the Zoning By-law are very similar to the Adult Entertainment Parlour By-law 1990-208.
The Zoning By-law sets out the zoning of the City which then identifies the permitted uses and the regulations that go along with it. Adult Entertainment Parlours are only permitted in the “Rural Commercial (RC)” zone provided that they can meet all of the associated regulations. The Capitol Centre is located within a “General Commercial Inter Core (C1)” zone. However, the Capital Centre is exempt from the City’s Zoning By-law under Section 3.3 “Public Uses Permitted”. This section of the Zoning By-law states that “The provisions of this By-law shall not apply to the use of any land or the erection or use of any building or structure for the purpose of public service by the municipality, local board, school board…” It then goes on to state certain regulations that must be met. The Capitol Centre is considered a local board of the municipality.”
By-law No.208-90, Being a By-law to License, Regulate and Prohibit in Certain Areas the Operation of Adult Entertainment Parlours, will require amendment to include a provision that a one-time exemption from the said by-law will be granted to the Capitol Centre located at 150 Main Street East, North Bay for the show entitled “Thunder from Down Under;” to be held on Wednesday, March 29, 2017.
In addition, Council resolved that the Legal Department be directed to review By-law No.208-90, Being a By-law to License, Regulate and Prohibit in Certain Areas the Operation of Adult Entertainment Parlours, to ensure that it is representative of current and modern practices.
- As the Capitol Centre will be exempt from the by-law, it will not be required to pay a licence fee.
