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ST. JOHN'S, N.L. —

A glass of buttery chardonnay pairs well with popcorn — a combination St. John’s moviegoers might soon enjoy.

At the regular Monday council meeting, St. John’s city council approved an application from Cineplex to add wine and beer to its concessions menu at Scotiabank Theatre in the Avalon Mall.

The motion passed with all but Deputy Mayor Sheilagh O’Leary and Coun. Wally Collins voting in favour.

Coun. Ian Froude motioned to approve the sale of beer, wine and cider at Cineplex in the Avalon Mall. JUANITA MERCER/THE TELEGRAM

Coun. Ian Froude, ward councillor for the area, motioned approval. Just a few weeks ago, when the application was last on council’s agenda, he motioned to defer the application so he could get more information from Cineplex about how the alcohol would be served.

On Monday, he explained the process.

Wine, cider and canned beer — not spirits — would be sold at concessions with a two-drink maximum. Moviegoers 19 years of age and over will be able to enjoy the beverages while watching any movie at the theatre.

Froude said there will be ushers patrolling auditoriums to manage alcohol consumption.

“Beverages will be served by trained and certified cast members during normal operating hours in accordance with the licence granted by NLC (Newfoundland Liquor Corp.) and all applicable laws,” Sarah Van Lange, executive director of communications with Cineplex, stated in an email to The Telegram.

O’Leary said she worried those parameters wouldn’t be enough to prevent disruption of family movie outings.

“The issue for me really came down to the fact that we have very few family-only, non-alcoholic venues in the city," she said. "And I think that movie cinemas, in particular, are one of the kind of safe zones for families to be able to take their small children to go and view movies without concern about any kind of disruption that might happen that sometimes occurs when alcohol is present.”

Deputy Mayor Sheilagh O’Leary said she’s “definitely not a prude,” but she voted against serving alcohol at the theatre because “the cinemas are one of the last vestiges” of family-friendly entertainment. JUANITA MERCER/THE TELEGRAM

O’Leary maintained her opinion is not prudish — rather, she said people can purchase alcohol nearby at The Rec Room, where consumption is more easily monitored. She said theatres are dark, and policing patrons under the influence is “an awful lot of pressure to put on the ushers.”

She said she received five or six emails from area residents about the application, and most of those were opposed to the idea.

Meanwhile, Collins said he simply didn’t think the theatre is the right place to serve alcohol.

Coun. Sandy Hickman, however, said this is a trend all over North America, and that for most moviegoers “it’s just a casual glass of wine.”

The municipal approval from St. John’s is only one step in the process for Cineplex. The application still needs to go through the NLC for final approval. That will involve another opportunity for public input.

Mount Pearl also recently gave municipal approval to Cineplex to offer the same service at the Mount Pearl Square cinema. That application also requires NLC approval.

While this offering will be new to Newfoundland, Cineplex currently operates 88 fully licensed theatres in Ontario, Manitoba and Alberta.

Twitter: @juanitamercer_

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