Council recommends that strip club’s liquor license hours stay the same
At its meeting on Monday, Nanaimo city council heard from Carl Butterworth — owner of Harbour Dance Studio — about an application for extended hours for a liquor licence for the Sweet Spot Nightclub, which is an adult-entertainment establishment.
Butterworth, who has operated the Harbour Dance Studio for more than 30 years in the area, said he was opposed to the application as the owner said he would operate a sports bar with special events between 11 a.m. and 7 p.m.
“We can all guess what the special events will be, as the interior has been purpose-renovated to accommodate only one kind of event,” Butterworth told council.
He told a story about a parent leaving the dance studio with her child when they passed a group of men outside the club “comparing the vaginas of different strippers.”
“If you don’t like hearing the word vagina in council proceedings, imagine the level of discomfort when your mother, on her own at night, walks past a group of men who clearly have little respect for women,” Butterworth said. “Then imagine trying to explain the situation to your daughters, who are eight and 10.”
Coun. Ben Geselbracht moved that council recommend that the Liquor and Cannabis Regulation Branch deny the application for extended hours.
Coun. Sheryl Armstrong said the RCMP has had “zero issues” with the club and that council should only consider the application for the extended liquor license, not the nature of the entertainment.
“It’s not a strip club, it’s entertainment,” she said. “We have to be really careful with that.”
Armstrong said strip clubs have been in the community for years and she doesn’t “know what the big issue is” because the public never sees the women who are dancing in the club.
“It doesn’t matter whether it be a strip club or a regular pub or a restaurant," she said.
The motion to recommend that the application be denied was carried with Mayor Leonard Krog, Coun. Sheryl Armstrong, Ian Thorpe and Erin Hemmens opposed.
Prezoning for social housing passes
Council approved a Pre-Zoning for Social Housing plan that allows for buildings up to six stories high and density for rental social housing buildings if conditions are met. The next step is a public hearing.
Coun. Geselbracht asked about affordability of the units and being set below 20 per cent of average market rent in the city, as determined by the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation.
The average market rent for a private apartment — across various sizes — in Nanaimo was $1,685 in October 2025 according to the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation’s annual rental market report.
“I’m concerned that we will prezone a bunch of properties and get something that really isn’t that affordable,” he said.
The motion passed unanimously.
Council also discussed the 2025 Annual Municipal Report, off-street parking regulations, officer delegation, neighbourhood association priorities and a few development permit and zoning applications.
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