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== [[Jerry's Alley]] == |
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Jerry's Alley was the lounge of the Russell Hotel in St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada. Jerry's Alley, or "The Russell" as it was commonly known, was a unique place in Southern Ontario, as it was a virtual "Ground Zero" of the alternative music scene from the late 1970s through its demolition in 1996. |
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The Russell Hotel was owned by Jerry Russell, who was an employee at St. Catharines' General Motors Assembly Plant #2. |
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While the hotel itself was primarily a low-rent residence for pensioners and fixed-income adults, the lounge was a haunt for everyone. In a small city the size of St. Catharines, 'alternative' space was at a premium, and Jerry's Alley somehow managed to accommodate prople from most walks of life. On any given night one could see skinheads, punks, faux-Rastas, metalheads, nerds, leather-scene gays and old-time alcoholics interacting in a (mostly) peaceful manner. |
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Jerry's Alley was primarily a live-music venue, and presented hundreds, if not thousands of live acts over the years. The bands ranged in scope from small regional acts such as Problem Children, Bitter Reality, Tension, and Brontocrushrock to relatively well-known artists such as Bad Brains, DOA, Alien Sex Fiend, and the Forgotten Rebels. |
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Bands who played the Russell were not entitled to any kind of 'star status'. The 'stage', such as it was, was a 1' rider in the North West corner of the bar. The audience easily interacted with the bands, which added to the DIY, anything goes mentality of the club. |
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On nights when no live bands were scheduled, records were spun by a handful of volunteer disc jockeys on a begged-and-borrowed PA system which more often than not only broadcast in the right channel. Featured DJs included Dirk, Lawrence, Alisa, John, Laurie, Morgan and Pete, but essentially anyone with more than two records in his collection could come in and spin. Records played were generally well-known Canadian punk and new wave acts from the late 1970s to the late 1980s, but the appeal of Jerry's music selections was the diversity. In any given night one could hear everything from Black Sabbath top Grace Jones; from (neo-fascist skinheads) Skrewdriver to Peter Tosh. |
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The Russell was also on occasion used as a venue for municipal fundraising, such as in the case of the "Better Him than Me '93" party to collect food for the Niagara Regional Food Bank. |
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The Russell was informally divided into two large rooms; a 15' bar in the front, along with a pool table and several tables and chairs, and the back room, which was essentially empty except for a candy vending machine and a rather dubious looking toilet. |
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Despite the possession of narcotics being unlawful, there was a defacto "don't ask, don't tell" policy in place in the lounge. As long as the manager and regular bartender, Lucy, didn't see or smell narcotics consumption, it was tacitly permitted in the back room. This was particularly welcome in the winter months, when sub-zero temperatures made smoking dope in the actually alley beside "Jerry's Alley" impractical. The back room suffered frequent electrical shortages due to faulty wiring, which added to the whole "Istanbul" vibe of the place. |
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Also somewhat questionable was the admissions policy in Jerry's Alley; many people known to be under the Age of Majority in Ontario (19 years of age) were allowed in, despite being legally prohibited from the premises. Some evenings this was commonplace, when other times the law was strictly enforced, and there never seemed to be any reason for this disparity. |
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The bar itself underwent a few aesthetic changes throughout its lifetime, mostly under the guidance and labour of volunteer patrons who prefered to treat the establishment better than their own homes. In 1993, a large mural was donated by several patrons. The artwork consisted of a collage of pop icons, ranging from Lon Chaney to Adam West's Batman; from Betty Grable to the Clash's Joe Strummer. |
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During its lifetime, Jerry's Alley was subject to several closures, sometimes brief and sometimes extended. These closures were generally due to breaches of fire codes, occupancy regulations or other municipal bylaws, and on two separate occasions Jerry's Alley was closed due to fire. |
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The first fire occurred during the day, when the bar was opened early to attract customers attending the Niagara Grape and Wine Festival Parade. On this occasion, the Fire Department's efforts to extinguish the blaze, which began in the back room, were hampered by the fact that many of the already impaired patrons refused to leave the premises, and the brief theft of an idling fire truck parked outside the hotel. |
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The second fire closure, which applied to the entire hotel as well as the lounge, was the eventual downfall of the business, which was left closed for three years before being demolished in 1996. |
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In 2002, a project documenting a winter night at Jerry's Alley was begun by documentary film-maker Morgan Lewington. Submissions to this ongoing project can be sent to jerrysalleyinruin@hotmail.com |
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There are three moratoria that protect the B.C coast from offshore drilling; Provincial, Federal and First Nations. B.C. was the first to pass a moratorium in 1971 because they wanted to prevent Alaskan oil tankers from going through the Hecate Strait, Dixon Entrance and Queen Charlotte Sound (Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources (g)) in order to protect the environment from oil spills. The Federal moratorium was introduced in 1972 when Canada decided not to approve any more West Coast offshore exploration permits. Thus for over 30 years at all levels of government it has been clear that the environmental risk from offshore oil has been judged to be too risky to accept. Currently there is a proposal to begin offshore oil drilling in British Columbia. Supporters argue this will economically benefit B.C. Even if this is true, the risks to the environment and First Nations cultures far outweigh the potential economic benefits. Offshore drilling is not the panacea for British Columbians since B.C. does not require salvation.
Potential environmental damage is the greatest risk of offshore drilling. These risks are hard to estimate, numerous and complex. Environmental impacts will be felt from exploration, development as well as production.
Seismic testing is an essential first step in the exploration for oil and gas. Air guns are used to send out bursts of sound into the rock looking for characteristics of oil-bearing strata beneath the ocean’s bottom. This noise is known to cause hearing, behavior and visual damage to fish, fish larvae and whale migration routes (Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources (f)). Close-range seismic noise can seriously injure and even kill fish. The fish populations will continue to fall over a number of days. Seismic testing also disturbs birds causing them to abandon their nest and birds diving for prey would be exposed to the noise of the seismic survey operation.
Following successful seismic testing, drilling is the next risky task that occurs with both exploration and development of offshore oil deposits. Rotary rigs are mounted on the seabed or free floating to find out if the strata’s contain oil. Mud is circulated through the drill string to remove drilled out rock cuttings. The disposal of rock and mud cuttings is a contaminant issue. Drill cuttings may settle on the seabed affecting the animals living in the sediments of the ocean floor. With that, the drill cuttings may be transported over larger areas due to the current. One product of drilling a well is produced water, it is initially 100 percent formation water but may be mixed with seawater when the injected water breaks through to the producing well. Produced water contains hydrocarbons, dissolved mineral salts, sulphur, barium, iron, strontium and small amounts of heavy metals and can range in pH from neutral to acidic. Cooling water is used to remove heat from equipment such as top-drives and draw-works. Seawater is drawn from the ocean and passed through a heat exchanger. When the seawater is in the heat exchanger, the water is deoxygenated and sterilized by electrolysis, which releases chlorine form the salt solution. The temperature of the cooling water may be 20 to 30 degrees over the ambient temperature. The seawater is then discharged back into the ocean.
After successfully finding oil, commercial production is yet another risky stage. Oil spills could be from exploratory drilling which would release small amounts of oil or from actual oilrig production, which would have a greater chance of a large oil spill. Small oil spills may occur because of over activity in an area where the oil is getting drilled (Ministry of Mines, Energy and Petroleum Resources (a)). The B.C ferry, Queen of the North, had an estimated 220,000 liters of diesel fuel on board along with 23,000 liters of lubrication oil (CBC (c)), that is an example of a small oil spill. The Exxon Valdez oil spill in 1989 just off the coast of Alaska released 43, 216, 000 liters of oil (Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources (a)). Thus, if a spill that large can happen there, it can happen here as well because our wind and tidal currents are similar to that of Alaskans. In 2002, the Prestige, a tanker that sank off the coast of Spain, released 562, 100 barrels of oil, which is equivalent to 89, 936, 000 liters of oil (Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources (a)). This was considered to be 16th largest oil spill in the world (Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources (a)).
Offshore drilling in Newfoundland and Labrador had 138 spills less than 1,000 barrels during exploration drilling and production between 1997 and 2002 (Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources (a)). The probability in Nova Scotia for a tanker carrying 150, 000 barrels of oil to spill is 1 in 83 (Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources (a)). That could happen in B.C. As a British Columbian, I believe the one percent risk is not worth the threat. The proposed project in the Cook Inlet includes drilling of four exploratory wells and production of 140 million barrels of oil over a 20-year production period (Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources (a)). The prediction is that there will be 484 small spills (less than 1,000 barrels), and a 19 percent probability of a large oil spill (more than 1,000 barrels) over the life of the project (Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources (a)). This shows that spills are a common and inescapable occurrence in the offshore oil development. The Cook Inlet risk assessment estimates the risk of spills that B.C. can face.
B.C. has a wide range of species; over four hundred species of fish, six thousand and five hundred species of invertebrates, a hundred and twenty one species of birds and twenty nine species of marine mammals (David Suzuki Foundation (d)) on the coast. Just exploration threatens these species. The severe wind and the tidal current patterns in B.C. would guarantee that oil would hit the coast and areas of great ecological and economic importance. An oil spill may cause fish to leave an area and fisheries can uptake hydrocarbons into commercial fish thus tainting fish flesh, giving it a foreign flavor and odor (Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources (d)). This would have a tremendous negative impact on our fishing industry. The ensuing devastation of the ocean would obviously harm tourism, as well as the sports and commercial fishery (David Suzuki Foundation (b)). It would ruin the B.C. economy that we have worked so hard to build.
The Coastal, Haida, Da’naxda’xw, Gitxaala, Gwasala, Haisla, Heiltsuk Kitssumkalum and Qualicum first nation group along with many other first nation tribes also oppose lifting the Federal moratorium because of cultural and environmental concerns (CBC (e)). Currently the First Nations hold most of the power because their land claims have not been settled with the Federal and Provincial governments. The First Nations have rights and are entitled to make decisions about the use of their land; this includes regulating offshore oil development on their territory. The Haida nation has declared title over the Queen Charlotte Islands as well as the seabed resources of over half the Hecate Strait and 320 kilometers out into the Pacific Ocean (Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources (a)).
First Nation and treaty rights receive constitutional protection under section 35 of the Constitutional Act of 1982:
. . . . must be an element of practice, custom, or tradition integral to the distinctive culture of the aboriginal group claiming the right. To be integral, a practice, custom, or tradition must be of central significance to the aboriginal society in question-one of the things which may be the culture of the society distinctive. The practices or customs and traditions which constitute aboriginal rights are those which have continuity with the practices, customs, and traditions that existed prior to the contact with European society. . . . (Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources (a)).
The First Nations have been in B.C. for thousands of years, establishing rich cultures and traditions based on the ocean environment. These cultures and traditions are immensely strong, especially their connections to life styles and economies that are dependent upon the resources of the land and sea (CBC (e)). An impact to the ocean will impact not only the food source itself, but the way of life of coastal people (CBC (e)). The risk to the livelihood of coastal First Nations is not worth the potential financial benefit that could be gained through offshore development, this is not even guaranteed.
An oil spill may destroy everything, causing irreversible harm to the traditions and lifestyles of the First Nations. The Sinking of the Queen of the North has become increasingly worrisome for the First Nations regarding long-term impacts on traditional shellfish harvesting areas. As mentioned above, if offshore drilling occurs the potential for oil spills are extremely high. The wind pattern and currents patterns in B.C. would guarantee that the oil would hit the coast and areas of ecologic and economic importance (David Suzuki Foundation (d)), and irrevocably harm the First Nation environment. Further, it is unclear how they would benefit from the promised economic gain, yet they have the most to lose.
Even if there are great economic benefits, it is important to determine who benefits. The First Nations will not benefit from offshore drilling; it is more likely that their environment would be harmed because of it. Governmentally, the Federal government would not benefit as much as the provincial government. If oil is found, B.C. would end up wealthy and may be more likely to act independently of the Federal government. For example, health care is a provincial issue but the Federal government helps fund the province hoping that it will live up to Federal expectations. If the province is wealthy enough and does not like it, then the Province could act without Federal money and ignore Federal wishes. Alberta is currently thinking of this. The Federal government spent over $5 billion subsidizing the frontier exploration under the National Energy Program of the 1980s, it pumped out $1 billion in oil (David Suzuki Foundation (c)). “The true benefits are political. The BC government can say that it’s trying to jump-start the economy, and it gives some coastal communities hope that if they just wait long enough, their ship will come in. But that is merely wishful thinking - a fish tale - and for the sake of the coast’s ecology and economy, we mustn’t take the bait.” David Hocking (David Suzuki Foundation (c), 2001). B.C. derives the benefit and the Federal government is burdened with more of the risk.
The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) is a reciprocity treaty signed between Canada, the United States and Mexico. It states that if we find a resource (in this case oil), we would have to sell it to the United States and Mexico if they want the resource, at the same price we would sell it to Canadians (SICE Foreign Trade Information System). Many people argue that offshore drilling would create local jobs. In reality, that is just not the case. Very few jobs would be created per dollar invested (Ministry of energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources (f)). Some long term specialized jobs may be created, which would need specially trained crew and may not be given to locals, but puts local jobs at risk (David Suzuki Foundation (d)). Some locals may be given jobs like servicing and fueling the vessels, but they would be short termed. Renewable energy like wind power creates twice the number of local jobs per dollar invested (David Suzuki Foundation (d)).
John Hunter, B.C.’s oil and gas industry consultant, said that the industry has improved technology and safety standards to deal with potential environmental concerns. In 2004, the Terra Nova platform had a mechanical failure, which caused about 250 barrels of crude oil to be spilled in the waters 350 kilometers southeast of St. John’s, endangering many birds. Technology has definitely not improved well because this oil is now sitting over dozens of clam beds that are significant food sources for the First Nations (CBC (a)). People also think that since our technology has vastly improved we would successfully drill oil and benefit from it. They are somewhat correct. Technology obviously improved between 1970 and 2000; therefore they think we should drill because we have the technology to do so. But they did not realize that in those years the price of crude oil has also vastly increased. In the 30 years, technology has improved and the price of oil has significantly increased. Technology would just be getting better and better. So, what would we lose if we wait another 30 years? We would lose nothing! The technology for drilling would improve and the price of oil would be worth much more.
For over 35 years governments have understood that the environmental risk from the discovery and production of offshore oil and gas was too great and not worth the possible economic gain. B.C.’s economy is robust and depends on tourism and a healthy environment. We do not need the money at the expense of the environment or First Nation’s culture.
Works Cited
CBC. (a). (2006). BC ferry intact on ocean floor. Retrieved April 12th, 2006, from http://www.cbc.ca/bc/story/bc-ferry20060327.html
CBC. (b). (2001). Liberals ready to allow offshore drilling? Retrieved April 12th, 2006, from http://www.cbc.ca/bc/story/bc-oilgas010529.html
CBC. (c). (2006). Mini-sub to search for couple missing in ferry sinking. Retrieved April 12th, 2006, from http://www.cbc.ca/bc/story/bc-ferrymissing.html
CBC. (d). (2004). Record spill at Terra Nova under scrutiny. Retrieved April 12th, 2006, from http://www.cbc.ca/nl/story/nf-terra-nova-spill-20041122.html
CBC. (e). (2004). Rights, Risks and Respect. Retrieved April 12th, 2006, from http://www.cbc.ca/bc/story/bc_offshore-moratorium20041119.html
David Suzuki Foundation. (a). (2005). Oil and Gas drilling: Moratoria. Retrieved January 25th, 2006, from http://www.davidsuzuki.org/oceans/coastaloil/moratorium.asp
David Suzuki Foundation. (b). Oil and Water do not mix: Report Summary. Retrieved February 9th, 2006, from http://www.davidsuzuki.org/oceans/oildrilling/summary.asp
David Suzuki Foundation. (c). (2001). Raising false hopes in a sea of speculation. Retrieved February 19th, 2006, from http://www.davidsuzuki.org/oceans/oildrilling/oped.asp
David Suzuki Foundation. (d). Reasons to keep the moratorium. Retrieved February 9th, 2006, from http://www.davidsuzuki.org/oceans/coastaloil/background.asp
Department of Justice Canada. Constitution Act 1867 to 1982. Retrieved April 15th, 2006, from http://www.lois.justice.gc.ca/en/const/c1867_e.html
Environment Canada. (2005). Climate change overview, what is the Kyoto Protocol? Retrieved March 9th, 2006, from http://www.ec.gc.ca/climate/kyoto-e.html
Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources. (a). (2004). A Review of offshore oil and gas development in British Columbia. Retrieved April 10th, 2006, from http://www.offshoreoilandgas.gov.bc.ca/reports/reports.htm
Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources. (b). (2002). BC offshore hydrocarbon Development: Report of the Scientific Review Panel, Vol. 11 Appendix 3: Lifting the Moratoria. Retrieved March 9th, 2006, from http://www/offshoreoilandgas.gov.bc.ca/offshore-oil-gas-in-bc/
Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources. (c). (2005). B.C.’s Offshore Oil and Gas: a Guide to the Geology and Resources. Retrieved February 2nd, 2006, from http://www.offshoreoilandgas.gov.bc.ca/reports/educational.htm
Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources. (d). (2005). Biological/ Ecological environment. Retrieved February 2nd, 2006, from http://www.offshoreoilandgas.gov.bc.ca/reports/educational.htm
Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources. (e). (2005). Report of the Expert Panel on Science Issues Related to Oil and Gas Activities, Offshore British Columbia. Retrieved February 2nd, 2006, from http://www.offshoreoilandgas.gov.bc.ca/reports/educational.htm
Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources. (f). (2005). Seismic survey operations: Impacts on Fish, Fisheries, Fishers and Aquaculture. Retrieved January 25th, 2006, from http://www.offshoreoilandgas.gov.bc.ca/reports/educational.htm
Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources. (g). (2005). Stalled offshore. Retrieved January 25th, 2006, from http://www.offshoreoilandgas.gov.bc.ca/reports/educational.htm
SICE Foreign Trade Information System. North American Free Trade Agreement between the Government of Canada, the Government of the United Mexican States and the Government of the United States of America. Retrieved February 19th, 2006, from http://www.sice.oas.org/trade/nafta/naftatce.asp
Sources
24.80.29.121 00:12, 12 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]
- Declined. I'm afraid you've more or less exactly misunderstood what Wikipedia is about. Wikipedia is an encyclopedia, not a collection of essays. Wikipedia articles do not attempt to advocate for or against a particular point of view on a topic. They can (and should) certainly discuss the various points of view on a topic; but the article itself is written from a neutral point of view. Furthermore, articles on Wikipedia are freely editable, and will usually have multiple contributors, so they must have an anonymous point of view as well; a Wikipedia article cannot be credited to a particular author. What you've got here is an essay, and I wish you luck in publishing it, but it's not appropriate here. Kickaha Ota 01:12, 12 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]
A fire and smoke buildup has occured in a CTA train in Chicago. Emergency personel are on scene. The cause has not been stated at this time. It has halted subway service around Chicago. One witness has said that smoke filled the subway trains without any previous warning. Most injuries are from smoke inhalation. No fatalities have been confirmed at this time. The cause is from a rear derailment.
Sources
71.230.34.245 00:26, 12 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]
SDH Synchronous optical networking
SDH Subtitles, see Subtitle
Sources
69.232.76.227 00:30, 12 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Mohamed Shihab is born in Maldives in 1966. He was the headmaster of Lhaviyani Atoll Education Centre in Hinnavaru, Maldives, from 1987. He was trained in Malaysia in Education and School Management. He served as Assistant Prinicpal in Majeediyya School in 1993 and then moved to the Education Ministry where he was responsible for the management of atolls schools till 15th August 2001. Since then he moved to Damas Company Pvt Ltd, where he became the Director Corporate Affairs on 1st July 2006.
Sources
www.damas.com.mv
202.1.192.5 00:48, 12 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Sources
Website is www.fatjock.co.uk - the guy is a legend, he has a site about all sorts including smallholding and ADSL campaigning. He's also a player of MMORPG's and well known in the community.
83.67.102.42 00:53, 12 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Play Mas is an old word from Trinidad that was used during Carnival time to mean "Perform" It was also an encouragement for slaves to revolt against masters
Sources
http://www.play-mas.de/index1_e.php
65.24.116.109 01:03, 12 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Music Editor with Leoma Music Co., and noted composer of over 200 published Southern Gospel Convention songs by Convention Music Co., Stamps-Baxter Music, James D. Vaughan Music, Leoma Music Co., Jeffress Music Co., National Music Co., Cumberland Valley Music, Jeffress-Phillips Music Co., Ben Speer Music and Texas Legendary Music Co. Dr. Reid has taught in various music schools and seminars over the last 30 years from local churches to Northeastern State University, Talequah, OK. He has served on the Board of Directors of the CUMBERLAND VALLEY SCHOOL OF GOSPEL MUSIC, and is currently on staff with the DOREMI GOSPEL MUSIC ACADEMY and the LEOMA SCHOOL OF GOSPEL MUSIC. He served as President of the Tennessee State Gospel Singing Convention in 1990 and President of the National Gospel Singing Convention in 2006, as well as other state and local conventions in Alabama, Mississippi and Tennessee. His song writing class at DOREMI GMA has produced from one to three new songs each year, by individual students or collectively by the whole class.
Sources
"Notes on Shape Notes" by Faye Jennings Thompson, MA, Music Educator, (Retired)
12.25.34.2 01:06, 12 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]
"He was such an hero, to take it all away. We miss him so, That you should know, And we honor him this day. He was an hero, to take that shot, to leave us all behind. God do we wish we could take it back, And now he's on our minds. Mitchell was an hero, to leave us feeling like this, Our minds are rubber, our joints don't work, Our tears fall into abyss. He was an hero, to take that shot, In life it wasn't his task, He shouldn't have had to go that way, before a decade'd past. Now he sits there in my heart, this hero of mine, Always there to make me smile, Make me feel just fine. He had courage,that boy did, courage in his heart. To take that shot, To end his pain, To tear us all apart. But in the end, he died in courage. Lacking, nevermore, He died a hero, Mitchell did, And we'll love him forevermore. We love you like a brother. We miss you so much. We will always love you, kid. Rest In Peace Mitch. ~Lila"
Mitchell was such an hero.
Mitchell J. Henderson shot himself in the head with a pistol, and died, after a nigra stole his i-pod, a basketball hit him in the face, and his female friends refused to give him any good head. He wasn't aiming for his head, but he managed to hit it anyway. He should have used aimbot. Since than, the horrible people of YTMND have been waging a one sided war against Mitchell's family and friends, most of whom do not even know the real menace of the YTMNDfags who attack them. Us good people of 4chan however, have for months been trying to repeal the deadly YTMND forces, and their friends at e-baumsworld.com, and gaiaonline.com, and try to protect the respectability of an hero like mitch. Even though the good people of 4chan have fought day and night, with no regard to there own personal gain, the YTMND.COM menace has found many of mitch's "friends'" (Who can't really be called friends, if they wouldn't help him out bye giving him a bit of head, so he wouldn't shoot himself) personal info, and even went so far as to post malicious code in a funeral book, and create many joke myspaces, such as myspace.com/ghostmitchell, and /zombiemitch. Many of which have been removed, but more of which spring up everday. If you wish to contact any of mithces friends, their aim names will be put up here, if you wish to help them out, in what little way you can.
Mitchells Myspace:
http://www.myspace.com/ripmitchell
Sources
http://www.mysapce.com/ripmitchell
http://www.4chan.org
71.104.103.155 01:10, 12 July 2006 (UTC)
Sincerely,
Your friends at 4chan.org[reply]
Jerry's Alley was the lounge of the Russell Hotel in St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada. Jerry's Alley, or "The Russell" as it was commonly known, was a unique place in Southern Ontario, as it was a virtual "Ground Zero" of the alternative music scene from the late 1970s through its demolition in 1996.
The Russell Hotel was owned by Jerry Russell, who was an employee at St. Catharines' General Motors Assembly Plant #2.
While the hotel itself was primarily a low-rent residence for pensioners and fixed-income adults, the lounge was a haunt for everyone. In a small city the size of St. Catharines, 'alternative' space was at a premium, and Jerry's Alley somehow managed to accommodate prople from most walks of life. On any given night one could see skinheads, punks, faux-Rastas, metalheads, nerds, leather-scene gays and old-time alcoholics interacting in a (mostly) peaceful manner.
Jerry's Alley was primarily a live-music venue, and presented hundreds, if not thousands of live acts over the years. The bands ranged in scope from small regional acts such as Problem Children, Bitter Reality, Tension, and Brontocrushrock to relatively well-known artists such as Bad Brains, DOA, Alien Sex Fiend, and the Forgotten Rebels.
Bands who played the Russell were not entitled to any kind of 'star status'. The 'stage', such as it was, was a 1' rider in the North West corner of the bar. The audience easily interacted with the bands, which added to the DIY, anything goes mentality of the club.
On nights when no live bands were scheduled, records were spun by a handful of volunteer disc jockeys on a begged-and-borrowed PA system which more often than not only broadcast in the right channel. Featured DJs included Dirk, Lawrence, Alisa, John, Laurie, Morgan and Pete, but essentially anyone with more than two records in his collection could come in and spin. Records played were generally well-known Canadian punk and new wave acts from the late 1970s to the late 1980s, but the appeal of Jerry's music selections was the diversity. In any given night one could hear everything from Black Sabbath top Grace Jones; from (neo-fascist skinheads) Skrewdriver to Peter Tosh.
The Russell was also on occasion used as a venue for municipal fundraising, such as in the case of the "Better Him than Me '93" party to collect food for the Niagara Regional Food Bank.
The Russell was informally divided into two large rooms; a 15' bar in the front, along with a pool table and several tables and chairs, and the back room, which was essentially empty except for a candy vending machine and a rather dubious looking toilet.
Despite the possession of narcotics being unlawful, there was a defacto "don't ask, don't tell" policy in place in the lounge. As long as the manager and regular bartender, Lucy, didn't see or smell narcotics consumption, it was tacitly permitted in the back room. This was particularly welcome in the winter months, when sub-zero temperatures made smoking dope in the actually alley beside "Jerry's Alley" impractical. The back room suffered frequent electrical shortages due to faulty wiring, which added to the whole "Istanbul" vibe of the place.
Also somewhat questionable was the admissions policy in Jerry's Alley; many people known to be under the Age of Majority in Ontario (19 years of age) were allowed in, despite being legally prohibited from the premises. Some evenings this was commonplace, when other times the law was strictly enforced, and there never seemed to be any reason for this disparity.
The bar itself underwent a few aesthetic changes throughout its lifetime, mostly under the guidance and labour of volunteer patrons who prefered to treat the establishment better than their own homes. In 1993, a large mural was donated by several patrons. The artwork consisted of a collage of pop icons, ranging from Lon Chaney to Adam West's Batman; from Betty Grable to the Clash's Joe Strummer.
During its lifetime, Jerry's Alley was subject to several closures, sometimes brief and sometimes extended. These closures were generally due to breaches of fire codes, occupancy regulations or other municipal bylaws, and on two separate occasions Jerry's Alley was closed due to fire.
The first fire occurred during the day, when the bar was opened early to attract customers attending the Niagara Grape and Wine Festival Parade. On this occasion, the Fire Department's efforts to extinguish the blaze, which began in the back room, were hampered by the fact that many of the already impaired patrons refused to leave the premises, and the brief theft of an idling fire truck parked outside the hotel.
The second fire closure, which applied to the entire hotel as well as the lounge, was the eventual downfall of the business, which was left closed for three years before being demolished in 1996.
In 2002, a project documenting a winter night at Jerry's Alley was begun by documentary film-maker Morgan Lewington. Submissions to this ongoing project can be sent to jerrysalleyinruin@hotmail.com
