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Need a drink? Tri-Cities pubs still need some customers to hang on

Pub owners in Coquitlam and Port Moody say they’re doing business with food takeout and delivery, and are also concerned with what happens when the pandemic is over
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With takeout orders and SkipTheDishes, bars in the Tri-Cities are scrambling to hang on to as many sales as they can.

At a time when many say they could use a drink, the COVID-19 pandemic is making alcohol a little harder to come by.

Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry ordered the closure of all bars and nightclubs earlier this month and restaurants have been reduced to take-out or delivery only.

The measures, designed to limit the transmission of the virus, have led to a significant reduction in business for liquor establishment owners in Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam and Port Moody, some of whom told The Tri-City News they are struggling to hang on to any kind of revenue.

“Our sales are down about 85% right now from where they’d normally be,” said Rylie Ableman, the owner of Port Moody’s St. James’s Well pub. 

Take-out and SkipTheDishes orders have become Ableman’s bread-and-butter, and he said he will be happy if he can break even. 

“It is not a ton of sales but it is still sales that are there to support some wages,” he said. “Some sales are better than no sales.”

A renovation planned for the summer will now be delayed, he added, as he works to focus on getting his business back once the pandemic is over. He has also temporarily shelved plans to expand. 

“I had a deal in place to purchase a second location,” he said. “That is going definitely going to be off the books for now. Coming back, I am going to have to focus on getting my business back up and running.”

For most businesses trying staying open through the COVID-19 crisis, the next big hurdle is the monthly lease payment.

Ableman said he has been in discussions with his landlord and is hoping to get a break, although he will still be on the hook for the triple-net lease portion of the property tax. 

Some of his suppliers have also been helpful, he added, noting Guinness beer took back between $5,000 and $6,000 in product he had stocked for St. Patrick’s Day.  

St. James’s Well has been operating in Port Moody’s NewPort Village for two decades and during his time at the pub, Ableman said he has donated to countless local causes and charities.

Now, he said he’s seeing some of that support come back to him through takeout and delivery orders at a time when he needs it most.

“They have been showing their support back toward us,” he said. “At our location, we have a couple thousand doors in [NewPort] Village. We are part of a community and it has helped us.”

Over at Woody’s Pub in Coquitlam, owner Gordon Cartwright said the cold beer and wine store he operates in conjunction with the bar has been a vital financial lifeline during the pandemic. While it is still doing SkipTheDishes orders, he said he is taking the opportunity to do some renovations on his establishment. 

He added that his primary concern has been ensuring his staff is looked after so they can return to work when the crisis passes. 

“We are responsible for our employees,” he said. “Whatever we can do for them that doesn’t interfere with their compensation with the unemployment benefits, we are going to do.”

Cartwright said he isn’t too worried about the long-term damage the pandemic could do to his business and believes the customers will come back.

“We are an institution,” he said.