The City streamlined how to access a Special Occasion Permit at the regular meeting of Yorkton Council Monday.
“A Special Occasion Permit, as required by the Saskatchewan Liquor and Gaming Authority, is required for anyone serving alcohol at a special event, such as a wedding, cabaret or fundraiser that is held in a location other than a private place,” explained Darcy McLeod, Director Community Development, Parks & Recreation with the City. “Special Occasion approval from a municipality is a requirement of the Saskatchewan Liquor and Gaming Authority for the sale, purchase, and consumption of alcohol within municipally owned facilities.”
The City’s current Special Occasion Permit policy was implemented in 1999 and amended in 2013 and outlines the steps required that an applicant or organization must take in order to receive a permit, said McLeod.
“With recent Special Occasion applications coming to the department of Community Development, Parks & Recreation for review, it was found that some steps in the approval process were missing from the existing policy,” he explained to Council. “Working with the Saskatchewan Liquor and Gaming Authority, policy revisions have been made to ensure the current process follows the requirements of the Alcohol Control Regulations, and to ensure due diligence when allowing special occasions permits in City–owned facilities.
“Changes to the policy include approvals from the respective property manager in accordance with the regular facility booking procedures, details regarding the applicant or organizer’s event security and building safety plan, and a new application form which includes the request for an emergency contact. RCMP review and approval is still required on all Special Occasion Applications.”
To streamline the process McLeod said Administration was recommending making it a department responsibility.
“Administration believes that since the Special Occasion Application policy responds to provincial legislation and deals only with events held within properties operated by the Community Development, Parks & Recreation department, that this policy is not required to be a City Council Policy and can be relocated from the City-Wide Policy Manual to the Community Development, Parks and Recreation Department’s administrative policy manual,” he said.
Council was unanimous in supporting the recommendation.
