Vancouver closer to making drinking alcohol in parks legal year-round – and beaches could be next
The Vancouver Park Board is taking steps to make drinking alcohol in public parks a legal activity all year long – and could soon allow booze at beaches as well.
A motion passed Monday during the recently formed board’s final meeting of 2022 calls for city staff to “initiate a process to make the Alcohol in Parks program permanent and year round.”
Twenty-two Vancouver parks were included in two pilot programs that ran from July to October 2021 and June to October 2022. The city’s goal was to better understand how people drank booze in parks, the impact on the community, and the required facilities.
Park board staff are still reviewing the most recent pilot, and are set to release a report on their findings in the coming weeks. According to the motion tabled by Commissioner Jaspreet Virdi, the 2022 pilot ran with no apparent problems or significant issues.
A survey on the success of the 2021 pilot found 86 per cent of people were supportive of the alcohol in parks program.
Now, there's interest in expanding a permanent program to include more parks across the city.
“A review of the City’s park inventory database indicates that there are approximately 70+ parks around the City with existing washroom facilities that may support the expansion of the alcohol in parks program, but which may require further review by staff in relation to site selection criteria,” the motion reads.
Bringing legal booze consumption to Vancouver’s beaches is also on the park board’s agenda, according to the motion, which directs staff to report back with a plan on the new pilot by early 2023.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Toxic testing standoff: Family leaves house over air quality
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
Decoy bear used to catch man who illegally killed a grizzly, B.C. conservation officers say
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
An emergency slide falls off a Delta Air Lines plane, forcing pilots to return to JFK in New York
An emergency slide fell off a Delta Air Lines jetliner shortly after takeoff Friday from New York, and pilots who felt a vibration in the plane circled back to land safely at JFK Airport.
OPP responds to apparent video of officer supporting anti-Trudeau government protestors
The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) says it's investigating an interaction between a uniformed officer and anti-Trudeau government protestors after a video circulated on social media.
'I was scared': Ontario man's car repossessed after missing two repair loan payments
An Ontario man who took out a loan to pay for auto repairs said his car was repossessed after he missed two payments.