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Vancouver

Vancouverites can now drink alcohol in select public plazas year-round

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Vancouver — After three summers of legal public drinking in select plazas around the city, Vancouver city council has voted to make the program year-round.

Vancouverites can now crack a cold one, responsibly, during all four seasons in six approved plazas, the city announced Tuesday.

“Time and time again we have seen that Vancouverites can be trusted to safely and responsibly enjoy alcoholic drinks in shared public spaces. We’re incredibly pleased to support the expansion of this program,” Mayor Ken Sim says in a news release.

"Community connection and spaces for public life are so important for our well-being and quality of life. Having plazas that allow alcohol consumption year-round will help make our city more vibrant while supporting local businesses.”

This year’s participating plazas, open from May 15, 2023 to May 14, 2024 are:

• Cambie Street and West 17th Avenue

• Cambie Street and West 18th Avenue

• Granville Street and West 13th Avenue

• Granville Street and West 14th Avenue

• Lot 19, 855 West Hastings Street

• Main Street and East 21st Avenue

And a seventh plaza will be open from May 15, 2023 to October 31, 2023 at Maple Street and West 4th Avenue.

During the longer days of the year, from May 15 to October 16, 2023, the plazas will operate from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily. From October 16, 2023 to May 14, 2024, the opening hours will switch to 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Like in previous years, the selected locations were chosen to be close to public washrooms, and in the case there isn’t one nearby, portable washrooms will be installed.

The "Drinking in Public Plazas" program was initially piloted in 2020 during the first pandemic summer, to allow people without access to private outdoor spaces to be able to drink and socialize outside.

The program was piloted again in 2021, before becoming permanent in 2022 due to high popularity. According to the city, a 2021 survey found 92 per cent of the public supported the public drinking policy and there were no health or safety issues found by Vancouver Coastal Health or the Vancouver Police Department.

Drinking alcohol in public parks year-round is also on the horizon. Legal drinking in 22 public parks was similarly piloted in 2021 and 2022, and in December the Vancouver Park Board voted to ““initiate a process to make the Alcohol in Parks program permanent and year round.”

The board is also set to look at making booze legal at beaches, but the 2023 iteration of the public drinking programs for parks and beaches have not yet been announced.