The annual pot-puffing 4/20 rally in downtown Vancouver has become more party than protest, according to critics fuming that taxpayers help foot the bill.

An estimated 25,000 people crowded outside the Vancouver Art Gallery at the height of this year’s pro-marijuana gathering, which saw dozens of vendors selling smokeables, edibles, and pot paraphernalia.

The stated purpose is to protest Canada’s pot prohibition, but the Downtown Vancouver Business Improvement Association argues it’s become more of a public celebration. Association president Charles Gauthier said it’s high time the organizers started obtaining the proper permits and paying for policing and cleanup.

“You can’t hide behind the word ‘protest’ to justify the event that happened yesterday,” Gauthier said.

“They’re using a public space and I would argue they should pay for the policing and engineering costs.”

The association noted the massive crowds caused traffic disruptions on Howe, Hornby, Robson and Georgia streets Monday, and that participants crowded bathrooms at nearby hotels, businesses and at Pacific Centre Mall.

But pot advocate Jodie Emery said 4/20 is an international cultural phenomenon that’s not unique to Vancouver, and which absolutely remains a protest at its core.

Emery said it’s also much less trouble for police than events such as the annual Celebration of Light Fireworks festival, which generally results in several arrests, dozens of fines, and sometimes even weapons seizures.

“This event hasn’t caused any significant harm to the community,” Emery said. “And thankfully for the police, they mostly get to just stand around all day with a very passive crowd.”

The Vancouver Police Department confirmed there were no significant incidents of note at this year’s 4/20 rally.

St. Paul’s Hospital on Burrard Street was flooded with 64 people who attended the event, however. Health officials said the patients, some of whom had taken edible marijuana products, suffered nausea, heart palpitations or minor injuries they had sustained at the rally.

Emery said the people experiencing pot-related symptoms likely just needed a good night’s rest.

“Nobody dies from marijuana use. It’s non-toxic,” she said. “The worst that happens is they feel unwell for a bit, then they get some sleep and recover.”

Due to increasingly large crowds at the gathering, for the last two years Emery and a number of other organizers have met and planned with the city to mitigate any disruptions caused by the admittedly disruptive event.

Emery said even though they don’t cover policing, organizers spend tens of thousands of dollars on other key expenses.

“We accept donations from vendors to reserve a spot in advance and we use that money to pay for the fencing, for radios to communicate with police and fire and ambulance, we pay for security groups of our own,” she said. “We pay for our own first aid tents, we pay a lot of money for toilets, for everything possible to make this run very smoothly.”

Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson agreed that the event remains a protest, and said it’s not uncommon for the city to meet with protest organizers to try and minimize impacts on the community.

But due to the growing size of the 4/20 rally, and the larger-than-usual disruptions seen on Monday, Robertson said the city may tweak its approach next year.

“Protest is part of life in Canada, and certainly in Vancouver,” he said. “This one just continues to grow, and I think it also shows how intense [the marijuana] issue is.”

With files from CTV Vancouver’s Scott Hurst