{YOUR COMMUNITY NEWSPAPER SINCE 1969 Pit ‘ite NORTH VANCOUVER CITY could be getting a new neighborhood pub after city council unanimously gave fur- ther approval to a new development on Lonsdale. And the $1.5-million retail com- plex that houses the pub could be in operation as early as December, developer Progressive Enterprises indicated Tuesday. Located at 14th and Lonsdale, the two-storey 27,000-square-foot complex will replace a host of area storefronts such as Club Delirious and Picasso's. At the heart of a packed 90- nenute public hearing was the By STEPHEN BARRINGT News Reporter pub's opening hours, a point over which the city’s staff and the developer continue to differ. Progressive Enterprises’ propos- ed closing time has ranged from 11:30 p.m, to 12:30 a.m. city development consultant Frank Morris told the public hearing. In an attempt to curtail noise i es 25¢ associated with the pub, an 11:36 p.m. closing time has been pro- posed in the project’s development agreement, he explained. Setting the pub's operating hours is up to the provincial gov- ernment, and the municipality has little power to determine when a neighborhood pub closes. But Progressive Enterprises rep- resentative Eric Dolden said that the extended hours are necessary if the new venture is to survive in the area marketplace. “Those ume constraints are in- dentical or similar to other pubs in the area with which they (the new pub’s owners) ure competing,”’ explained Dolden. In opposition to the proposal, Allan” Riedlinger, co-owner of Sailor Hagar’s Pub and member of a provincial association of neighborhood pub owners, told the public hearing a new pub so close to existing establishments would be a ‘disbenefit to the public.” Three pubs and three hotel lounges in the area mean stiff local competition that has forced res- taurants such as Snappers out of business, Riedlinger said. But reaction to the proposed pub was fargely good, with z Ts Ress OLN f ie ae FIVE-YEAR-OLD Chelsey Fraser pilots her kite in the wild blue yonder at Ambleside Park in West Van- couver. Today should provide more fine kite-flying weather with sunny skies, but expect a few showers over the weekend. NEWS photo Piell Lucents Concerns arise over operating hours, market demand speakers supporting the idea of a new neighborhood drinking establishment near 4th and Lons- dale. “YT think there is a need for a place where people can meet friends that is within walking distance,’’ said one of the speakers supporting the plan. Final approval of the project’s rezoning proposal is expected April 27, Changes to the development agreement between the city and the developer will be hammered out later before coming for city council approval, said Morris.