Okotoks - Curfew change not the answer

Vandalism victims don’t buy mayor’s plan

By Darlene Casten
Staff reporter

The most recent victims of vandalism said a change in the town’s curfew will likely not curb teens suspected in the senseless destruction of their property.
Okotoks mayor Bill McAlpine told the Western Wheel last week that he would like to see the midnight curfew, now in place for children age 15-and-younger, to be expanded to include 16 and 17-year-olds.
However, Gayle MacPherson, a member of the United Church, which was hit by vandals last weekend, said changes to the curfew would not curb the senseless destruction.
“The curfew has never been enforced so far,” MacPherson pointed out.
She said the curfew has not kept young teens off the streets late at night.
“I live a few blocks from downtown and I hear kids out until 1 or 2 a.m.,” MacPherson said. “They are probably between the ages of 14 and 16-years-old.”
A sign at the United Church was broken in half by vandals Saturday night and flowers were ripped from their pots, which were smashed by the culprits.

MacPherson said the church has had ongoing problems with bulbs being smashed from the lamps outside the church and has had a few other instances of vandalism, but has not had a problem for some time.
She said the items broken this weekend were donated by church members and will likely also have to be replaced by parishioners.
The Grace Lutheran Church on Okotoks’ north side was also a target of vandals Saturday night.
The church was spray painted, a window was broken by a rock and several trees were damaged.
Pastor Jon Overland said the congregation will have to pay to have the graffiti removed and the window replaced.
“It will be a burden,” Overland said, noting that his congregation is made up of only 50 to 60 people.
He said rather than adjust the curfew, parents should be spending more time with their teens.
“These kids are looking for attention so maybe they should be getting that at home,” he said.
Police don’t believe the two incidences are connected. Cpl. Craig Brown of the Okotoks RCMP said teens have different motivations for vandalizing peopleís property.
“It seems as each group gets older it’s a phase they go through,” Brown said.
Some youths are drinking or under the influence of drugs and some may be succumbing to peer pressure, he said.
Anyone with information about either case is asked to call the Okotoks RCMP detachment at 938-7046.

In Cahoots bar owner Roel Vandermeulen mixes a drink at his bar in Okotoks. Vandermeulen agrees with many of the recommended licensing changes for bars, including establishing minimum drink prices.
photo by Chris Graham

Alberta - Bar owner supports licensing changes

Local MLA won’t vote for change to 21-year-old drinking age

By Pamela Roth
staff reporter

For local bar owner Roel Vandermeulen, one of the first questions asked by his youngest patrons is “What do you have on special?”
Like other bars throughout the province, the actions that follow this question usually don’t go unnoticed, as young, intoxicated males have been known to pick a fight for no apparent reason during the early morning hours of last call.
Fewer than half of the people who walk through the doors of his bar are under 21, and, for the most part, Vandermeulen said they are there just to have a good time.
But according to Vandermeulen, it’s not uncommon for this age group to consume copious amounts of alcohol.
As a result of some of the problems caused by the over consumption of alcohol in young and older adults in the past, Vandermeulen raised his drink prices in hopes of putting a halt to any potential violence.
For the most part, Vandermeulen said his latest move has been effective in keeping alcohol consumption minimal, but won’t help if other bars are still luring in patrons with cheap drinks elsewhere.
In a report released last week by the Alberta Roundtable on Violence in and around licensed premises, it was recommended that in order to curb violence at bars, the province should restrict service hours, establish minimum drink prices and raise the drinking age to 21.
Vandermeulen has witnessed the antics of drunks in Okotoks for the past five years and believes the ideas outlined in the report sound like the right way to go.
“I don’t think it’s a bad idea. It’s not all just kids, but there is a problem with a lot of the younger adults,” said Vandermeulen. “Everybody wishes they could have a bar full of 25 and older, but that isn’t going to happen. The older crowd doesn’t go out three or four times a week — it’s the younger crowd that does and they all seem to have money to spend.”
Continued on page 4
Bar owners and managers, municipal and community officials, liquor industry regulators and law enforcement officers first met in November 2005 to take a close look at violence in and around licensed establishments. The conference later re-convened again in March before the report was released last Wednesday.
The 71-page report noted violence frequently starts inside a bar and spills out into the streets at closing time or when disorderly patrons are asked to leave.
The highest times for violence to occur included weekends, closing times and while standing in line, especially among young males between the ages of 18-24.
Aside from restricting happy hour and increasing the legal drinking age, the report also proposed in-house breach samples and restricting service hours.
If the recommendations were to become a reality, it wouldn’t be the first time Alberta’s liquor laws have been tweaked.
The legal drinking age in Alberta was 21 until 1971 when the Progressive Conservative party took over as government.
Since then some Alberta MLA’s have attempted to drive the drinking age back to 19 to match other provinces, however, the idea never gained enough steam.
Seventeen-year-old Alex McIntosh can’t wait to turn 18 and explore the bar scene, but the idea of waiting another three years to do so doesn’t sit well with him or his peers.
“That’s dumb,” said McIntosh. “People are just going to drink anyways. There is really no point.”
Highwood MLA George Groeneveld shared similar views as McIntosh and doubted raising the legal drinking age would do little to prevent those underage from consuming liquor.
“I don’t think we can turn the clock back like that,” said Groeneveld. “When the drinking age was 21, we cheated a little bit in those days too. Raising it might help minimally, but I wouldn’t support going to 21.”
The Roadhouse Bar in High River has seen its fair share of fights throughout the years, with many young adults appearing in Okotoks Provincial Court for charges of assault.
Owner Bonnie Lamb agrees with some of the recommendations in the report, but , like Vandermeulen, is still torn when it comes to the real question: should the legal drinking age be raised to 21?
“I think it should be,” said Lamb. “It saves a lot of turmoil with the kids and a lot of killing that shouldn't’ be happening. At the same time, it doesn’t matter. Even if you raise the age to 21, young adults are still going to drink.”