Photo: Pixabay

Penticton city council is pushing for support to remove the red tape for off-site winery and liquor sales.

In a new release from the city, they report seeing strong support from the Union of British Columbia Municipalities (UBCM) annual conference, which members of council are attending this week.

A resolution was brought forward by Coun. Julius Bloomfield on behalf of council, with 84 per cent of attending members during Thursday’s meeting supporting Penticton’s request that UBCM ask the BC Ministry of Public Safety and Solicitor General to revise licensing regulations so as to allow wineries and liquor manufacturers the opportunity to establish tasting rooms at non-agricultural locations.

“We were very pleased to see the UBCM membership support this resolution,” Penticton Mayor John Vassilaki said in the news release.

“With wine and liquor manufacturing being such an important industry, not just in the Okanagan, but across BC, and with tasting rooms contributing significantly to local economic development, creating opportunities that improve access to these facilities by removing restrictive regulations directly helps all communities benefiting from the jobs and products this industry produces.”

The current regulations mandate for BC wineries and liquor manufacturers to locate their tasting rooms on the agricultural lands where their products are made.

Council argues that this condition limits visitor access while also increasing demands to develop agricultural land for non-agricultural use.

“As the next step, we hope our passed resolution receives further support once it’s presented to the Province.”

The annual UBCM conference draws elected municipal officials together from across BC to review topics and resolutions of common and emerging interest. This year’s event was held Sept. 14 through Sept. 17 with participating members of Penticton City Council attending virtually.