After-hours dance event bylaw under review

Edmonton city councillors are taking a second look at a bylaw that prohibits serving alcohol at electronic music dance events that go beyond 2 a.m.

According to a city spokesman, the regulations were passed by mistake last fall when council approved updates to the bylaw regulating massage, escort and exotic entertainment.

Rules concerning after-hours dance events and flea markets are contained within the same bylaw. Although they were referred back to committee, they were passed into law at the same meeting.

In the last couple of weeks, electronic music fans have bombarded Edmonton city councillors with thousands of emails opposing the amendments.

Marcus Gurske, the organizer of the Fight2Dance campaign, says the provision will mean a loss in revenue of $80 million a year because events will no longer take place.

"It'll drive electronic music underground essentially, where events aren't licensed," Gurske said. "They're not regulated and we'll actually have more public safety issues then."

But city officials want the amendments to stay. They argue the events, which are often held at the Shaw Conference Centre, generate a high number of calls for police and emergency medical services.

"With the mix of alcohol and drugs, some people are getting sick," said Randy Kirillo, the city's chief licensing officer. "You know if we don't watch it, somebody is going to get severely injured. Or somebody might die from the combination of the two."

Gurske argues council needs to get rid of the amendment to attract and keep young people in Edmonton.

"Mayor and members of city council have spoken quite strongly over the last couple of years about making Edmonton a great city. An attractive city to young people," he said. "If you start to do this, you take away that attraction."

On Wednesday, councillors on the executive committee will discuss whether to remove the amendments from the bylaw.