Could East Village be home to St. Albert’s first hookah lounge?
The answer is very much up in the air after a presentation by Mostafa Hassan generated about a dozen questions from city councillors at their first meeting of the fall Tuesday afternoon, Sept. 3.
The hookah lounge would sell shisha (as many as 20 types of flavoured tobacco) for consumption on the premises, on the corner of St. Albert Trail and Coal Mine Road in the proposed East Village development. It would serve food from a Mediterranean-themed menu, but no alcohol and would be the city’s first.
“I know it’s not for everybody … but freedom of choice is why most of us chose to live in Canada,” Hassan said. “I am a resident and a business owner. I want to keep this to St. Albert.”
A hookah or water pipe consists of a head, body, bowl, hose and mouthpiece, according to Hassan’s presentation. Moist tobacco, a herbal mixture or another substance is placed into the head of the water pipe and is burned by a piece of charcoal which rests on top of the tobacco, usually separated by a piece of aluminum foil.
A hookah session usually lasts one to two hours, about the burning time of one shisha portion.
Coun. Sheena Hughes wanted to hear more about children in the lounge. Hassan said no one under 16 would be allowed in, and teens would need to have an adult of at least 18 years with them. If that person is their parent or guardian, they would be allowed to give their child permission to smoke the hookah along with them.
“We would prefer parents not bring their kids in. It’s something (where) we’re trying to get parents away from kids so they don’t smoke as much (around them).
“This would be a healthier kind of option for their families and also for themselves. They won’t be sort of smoking it twice.”
Hassan said many people use hookahs as an aid to stop smoking. Alberta Health Services warns that smoking tobacco in a water pipe carries the same health concerns as smoking cigarettes.
"Smoke from hookah has been linked to the same diseases as smoking cigarettes, such as cancer, heart disease, and lung disease."
Coun. Ken MacKay asked whether he would be exposed to second-hand smoke if he were at a booth next to one burning shisha. Hassan said he wouldn’t and that for example, lounges in Asian cities are open concept and well-ventilated to avoid exactly this pitfall.
“You can just smell the aroma (when you enter), which is very nice,” he said. “You can go there and relax at the end of your workday.”
Councillors heard from city staff that at least two rule changes would have to precede any grand opening. The zoning in the proposed location is “direct control mixed use,” meaning city council retains the final say on what can go there. Were that hurdle overcome, Hassan would then have to apply for an exception or change to St. Albert’s smoking bylaw, which forbids the consumption of tobacco products indoors.
Hassan said the lounge would be at least 95 metres from any residence.
Asked about noise, he said the sound level wouldn’t exceed that of any other restaurant with speakers on the patio. He said he intended to run it from 11 a.m. to midnight or 1 a.m.
“In bigger cities, they did change the bylaw to accommodate hundreds of thousands of people who want them to operate,” Hassan said. “This is what we’re trying to achieve. It’s about working around the law and with it and be abiding by it.”
Hassan said the nearest operating shisha lounge after a ban went into effect in Edmonton at the start of 2020 is in Sherwood Park. There are 21 in Calgary, a “couple of dozen” on Vancouver Island and 200 in Ontario, 80 of them in the Greater Toronto Area.
When asked about the rash of hookah lounge closures by the provincial government in 2023, he said most, if not all, of those places had poor ventilation, a key consideration.
He said the new lounge would feature fans capable of moving 15,000 to 20,000 cubic feet per minute of air and that the lounge would be 4,000 square feet in area with a mezzanine that could add another 3,000 sq. ft. of usable space.
Mayor Cathy Heron submitted an Information Request which will be read into the record at the Sept. 10 standing Committee of the Whole meeting. Administration will have 30 days to provide a response to council.
