Well folks, after over two years of playing around with the idea, the Vancouver Park Board is finally ready to launch a public drinking pilot program. Starting next week, Vancouverites will be able to drink (legally) at 22 parks around the city. Here’s what to know about it.
First off, you can’t wander around every part of the parks with a beer in hand. Instead, there are designated ‘pilot sites’ for it. These pilot sites were based on a number of factors, ranging from ‘buffer zones’ with playgrounds to easy access to avoiding bathing beaches.
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Enjoy a drink responsibly in 22 parks across the city this summer! The new Alcohol in Parks Pilot, allowing public consumption of alcohol in select Vancouver parks, launches July 12. For locations and full details visit: https://t.co/MCSMfq4pzJ pic.twitter.com/jpf3wwS1Xg
— Vancouver Park Board (@ParkBoard) July 7, 2021
That said, here’s the full list of the parks that were included:
- Collingwood Park
- David Lam Park
- Fraser River Park
- Granville Park
- Harbour Green Park
- John Hendry (Trout Lake) Park
- Kitsilano Beach Park / Hadden Park
- Langara Park
- Locarno Beach Park
- Maple Grove Park
- Memorial South Park
- Memorial West Park
- New Brighton Park
- Pandora Park
- Queen Elizabeth Park
- Quilchena Park
- Riverfront Park
- Robson Park
- Rupert Park
- Stanley Park
- Vanier Park
- Volunteer Park

Take Kitsilano Park as an example. Although the park covers a huge space, the only drinking pilot site is located near the northeastern most tip of it. Another thing to keep in mind is that drinking will only be allowed during certain hours of the day, from 11 AM to 9 PM, and the pilot will run until October 11th of this year.
Well, we must admit that after over two years of planning, we expected to have a little more robust public drinking pilot project than 3 months in a handful of parks. But hey, maybe public feedback will have it come back bigger and better next year.
We sure hope so! For more info on the rollout, just click here.