British Columbia’s Ministry of Health appears to be taking a hands-off approach to a Vancouver movie theatre’s plan to transform into a sports bar and stay open amid COVID-19 restrictions.
“For the Rio Theatre, if they are fully licensed, and the conditions are met under the order, including an approved safety plan, then likely yes, they could operate as a restaurant or bar,” a ministry spokesperson said in an email.
“This demonstrates the ingenuity of a long-standing B.C. business in unprecedented times.”
On Tuesday, the theatre’s owner told Global News they were making the switch out of frustration with B.C. restrictions that allow bars and restaurants to operate with COVID-19 safety protocols in place, but ban movie screenings.
The theatre has both liquor and foodservice licences.
“On the one hand, I’m I’m happy because it means it sounds like we can probably go ahead with our our sports bar plan. But at the same time, it’s just like, ‘Are you serious? Are you kidding me?'” owner Corrine Lea told CKNW’s Lynda Steele Show Wednesday.
“That instead of changing the rules that don’t make sense, they would rather praise us for being ‘innovative’ and ditching the arts for sports?”
Lea said the theatre already had a COVID-19 safety plan in place that was drafted earlier this year, requiring minor modifications to switch over to the sports bar model.
She said she is confident the theatre will be able to open and meet all safety requirements required of a licensed food and beverage establishment, though said the use of “likely” in the ministry’s statement was still concerning.
“It does make you feel uncertain and worried that, yeah, you could go to all this effort and still get shut down,” she said.
READ MORE: Coronavirus paints unclear picture for movie theatres heading into 2021
“The most important thing is that theatres get taken out of the ‘events’ category and we should be put in the same category as bars and restaurants.”
Asked if there was any concern about the theatre potentially skirting COVID-19 regulations, Jobs Minister Ravi Kahlon also praised the theatre for its innovation.
“My view is that we’ve got rules in place to ensure the public is safe,” he said.
“Businesses have been adapting very well to those rules — sometimes not overly happy with some of the rules that are put in place, but public safety is number one. So if businesses find innovative ways to operate within the safety rules, I think that’s a good thing.”
Under the sports bar plan, guests will be limited to groups of six, provided they are all from the same household, and the volume from the screen will be limited.
The theatre will be open Saturday from 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. The plan is to remain open seven days a week, from 3:30 p.m. to 10 p.m. on the other days.
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