Don't call it a strip club

And the Letterkenny crew talks to the Cougars?

I skipped the Monday council meeting. Here’s some highlights of what happened:

Support for the return of a not-a-strip-club

Council gave their support for a liquor licence application for the reopning of Alibi’s on Third Avenue, reports My Prince George Now.

The nightclub has been dubbed “Alibis 2.0” in the business’ letter of intent, and will be located at 1366 Third Avenue.

“There was a time years ago when we had half a dozen night clubs downtown, the night scene downtown was vibrant, there was lots of people around, the taxis were busy, the restaurants we’re busy later on,” said Councillor Brian Skakun.

“If you can get that many people downtown on any given night, I think it’s great for downtown.”

Longtime residents may remember Alibi’s as a strip club. Alibi’s 2.0 says it will not be that:

We do not view Alibis as the general definition of a “Gentleman’s Club.” Or “Strip Club”. We view it as an Entertainment Venue with a focus on all genders in the 25 to 60+ year age group. We will be offering our patrons a high energy, safe environment to socialize, dance and be entertained. Currently no other establishment in Prince George offers this level of entertainment to this core customer group. It is our belief that Alibis will fill a void that has been lacking in Downtown Prince George for some time.

However:

• Professional Exotic Dancers will provide entertainment.

• Management will provide and brief the dancers on Alibis house policy regarding performances and to reenforce the no contact rule with patrons.

• Dancers will perform as required during business hours and/or for special events as required.

Also:

• City Council discusses air quality in the Millar Addition (everything old is new again, this was another issue that propelled Shari Green to council and then the mayor’s chair a decade ago)

• Prince George mayor's public safety committee takes aim at fighting crime

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More on safer supply diversion

In Northern Beat, Fran Yanor shares news that there is what she describes as a “gag order” on RCMP sending news releases about safer supply and other “hot button” issues:

“It is very clear we are in a pre-election time period and the topic of ‘public safety’ is very much an issue that governments and voters are discussing,” writes a senior RCMP communications official in an email dated Mar. 11 in what appears to have gone out to all BC RCMP detachments.

…

The memo directs detachments to route all outgoing communications and refer all incoming inquiries on “hot button issues” through central communications command, including those inquires coming from communications representatives of the provincial government, ministries and elected officials.

Hot button issues were identified as drug seizures, decriminalization, gun violence, mental health related calls, violent and repeat offenders, bail reform, and more.

“Please also use your judgement on topics not identified here that have the potential to be controversial or high-profile,” the writer said advising recipients to remain factual, avoid editorial comments and refrain from criticizing others.  

Respectfully, I’m not sure “gag order” is the right word to describe this memo which, as described here, looks to be around keeping E-Division, the command centre for RCMP in B.C., in the loop on communications and reminding local RCMP comms officers to remain factual and avoid editorializing. A little cynically, I’ll also note this line from Yanor, “but the directive has effectively restricted frontline and senior detachment police from talking freely to journalists” strikes me as maybe something of a non-issue because in my time as a journalist, frontline RCMP have never spoken freely to journalists, either as the result of some directive or by personal choice. That said, if other journalists have had more luck getting candid on the record conversations with police and they are now being prevented from having that happen, I’m all ears.

I’ll also note this memo went out on March 11 and nearly a month later - April 8 - two RCMP detachments put out press releases about suspected safer supply trafficking — one in Prince George and one in West Kelowna, so the order doesn’t seem to be gagging cops from putting out press releases about the issue, at this point. I’m not being critical of the reporting on the memo, mind you — it’s interesting! — those are just immediate thoughts that popped into my mind around it.

And on that note — a search warrant obtained by CBC News shares much more information than the police themselves did about the safe supply trafficking operation that was the subject of this week’s release in Prince George:

RCMP in the north-central B.C. city of Prince George spent 10 days last month mounting a surveillance operation on a woman who allegedly stood outside a downtown pharmacy each morning trading illicit drugs for "safe supply" medication.

According to a search warrant obtained by CBC, police saw the 58-year-old suspect make dozens of "hand-to-hand" transactions in that time — both buying and selling prescribed pills worth up to $20 a tablet on the street.

The court documents cite the pharmacy manager who told police that "many of his patients are accosted by individuals outside of the pharmacy in the mornings by people who are trying to purchase the safe supply drugs."

"Since the inception of the 'Safe supply' program, he has observed vehicles and people loitering outside of the store trying to purchase safe supply drugs from patients," the information sworn to obtain the warrant reads.

"The sale and exchange has only gotten worse and has been for the past year or more."

Full story.

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News roundup:

• In related news, the province has set up a task force around illicit drug use in B.C. hopsitals. Also worth reading is this X thread from a nurse on potential non-punitive solutions, including links to this article from Canadian Nurse on addictions treatment and harm reduction in hosptials and this piece on supervised inhalation sites in hospitals aimed at tackling the problem.

• A former Prince George and District Elizabeth Fry Society financial manager faces sentencing for using two credit cards issued by the non-profit organization to run up $240,000 in personal expenses.

• The city has launched a bylaw bot.

• PG Fire Rescue respond to a pair of blazes.

• Police incident on Tabor.

• Prince George BC SPCA receives over 200 cats from a property in Houston B.C.

• The Prince George Cougars posted a podcast interview the creator and cast members of the comedy series Letterkenny. News to me, one of the actors is the son of the team’s associate coach!

Today’s song:

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Send feedback by emailing northerncapitalnews@gmail.com. Find me online at akurjata.ca.