Montreal mayor Denis Coderre joined hundreds of thousands of revellers at the all-night Nuit Blanche arts festival in March. Apparently, he had a good time because, by the time it was over, he had an odd new priority – extending Montreal’s already late bar-closing time (3 a.m.) to 5:30 a.m., unheard of in North America.

Odd, because the city he took over in November faces many more pressing problems. From crumbling overpasses to sinkholes caused by century-old sewer pipes. From rooting out corruption to reining in a golden pension plan that will pay $600 million to retired city workers this year – 12% of the city’s budget.

Although Coderre’s initial all-night drinking plan was shot down, the populist mayor is still keen on the idea. He says later bar closing hours could boost the economy and attract tourists. The mayor wanted to start with an experiment, a four-weekend pilot project involving 19 downtown bars. He expected the trial run to be rubber-stamped by the provincial board that reviews liquor-licence changes.

Instead, the board exposed the mayor’s improvisation. In a stinging, 38-page decision handed down this summer, the board said Coderre’s proposal was sloppy. Skimpy on details, it also failed to respond to Mothers Against Drunk Driving and other critics. The city’s proposal focused exclusively on potential economic gain, with nary a thought about the social costs of all that extra boozing, the board concluded.

But even on the economic side, Coderre’s arguments were weak. Montreal’s nightlife economy is estimated to bring in $500 million in revenue annually and support 10,000 jobs. But the mayor had no evidence to show that extending bar hours would be good for the economy or lure more tourists. No research was presented about European and Asian cities with round-the-clock drinking.

Under Coderre’s plan, Montreal police would boost patrols around bars. How much would that cost? Unknown. What about the economic and social cost of more drunk driving? Also unknown. Some bar owners said they were not sure they would make more money, what with all the extra serving and security staff required.

Montrealers who live near bars cringe at the idea of delaying last call by two and a half extra hours, saying they’re fed up with bar noise and rowdy patrons.

Coderre says that he wants Montreal to stand out from other cities. It already has a party reputation, thanks to its vibrant nightlife, many festivals and the F1 Grand Prix. “A metropolis should be fun,” Coderre insists, mocking Toronto’s 2 a.m. last call. “There is a nightlife in Montreal. The only reason there is one in Toronto is because there’s half a million Montrealers who have moved there.”

Undeterred by naysayers, Coderre is working on a new plan. Perhaps he should take some advice from a bar owner who would have taken part in the mayor’s pilot project. “People were scared by 5:30; it seemed too radical,” says Ziggy Eichenbaum, owner of Ziggys, the famed Mordecai Richler hangout on Crescent Street. “Maybe he should have just said, ‘4 o’clock’ to start.”

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