Popular Port Arthur pub no longer selling alcohol due to expired liquor licence

A popular pub in downtown Port Arthur has closed off its taps and is no longer serving alcohol because of a months-old expired liquor licence.

The Sovereign Room's liquor sales licence expired on Aug. 3, 2024, said an Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) spokesperson.

The pub owner said that AGCO shut liquor sales down last weekend during The Hunger, Thunder Bay's annual Halloween Festival, the pub's owner, Scott Arnott, told CBC News when reached by phone. 

Arnot confirmed the Sovereign Room was open Thursday for food sales only.

"The Sovereign Room is not authorized to sell and serve liquor," said  AGCO in an email to CBC News. 

Arnot said the pub was unable to renew its liquor licence due to new tax compliance regulations. 

"As they are no longer a licence holder, any further operations would be a matter for the local police service," AGCO said. "No renewal application was submitted to the AGCO and there are no new applications currently pending before the AGCO."

Selling liquor without valid licence illegal: lawyer

"Look, you're not allowed to sell liquor unless you have a licence to do so," said Harrison Jordan, a lawyer at Substance Law, a Toronto-based firm specializing in regulated substances and industries.

Anyone involved in the unlicensed sale and/or serving of alcohol could be held liable, he said.

Any establishment doing so, and its employees, could face potential charges under provincial liquor legislation, said Jordan, who is not connected to the Sovereign Room or its situation. In additional to provincial law, the AGCO has a framework of administrative monetary penalties and sanctions that could be laid against the licence holder, he said. 

As of July 1, 2023, anyone applying for or renewing a liquor licence in Ontario needs to prove they are up to date on their tax filings. Those with unfiled returns or unpaid taxes won't be able to get a Tax Compliance Verification (TCV) number. 

"You need to have a compliant TCV number in order to renew, and so that is something that could hold up a renewal," said Jordan.

Liquor licences need to be renewed in advance and can't be renewed after they expire. Sometimes licensees who have submitted renewal requests can get interim authorization to continue selling alcohol while the AGCO assesses the renewal, said Jordan.

The AGCO said the Sovereign Room has not submitted an application for a renewal or new licence.