Even though Canada’s cities are making it easier to drink in parks, public health concerns are still being raised
You can have a cocktail at home, a glass of sangria on a restaurant patio, a drink on an airplane, and in some places, you can even sip champagne while getting a pedicure.So why is it such a challenge to drink alcohol in a city park?
Several Canadian cities have recently started to think about letting it happen under certain conditions. However, some politicians, public health experts, and concerned citizens have pushed back against this.
People who don’t want people to drink in public places say it’s bad for their health and worries about drunk driving and other dangerous and disorderly behavior, among other things.
Dan Malleck, the chair of Health Sciences at Brock University in St. Catharines, Ont., and a medical historian who specializes in drug and alcohol regulation and policy, said, “We have this weird relationship with alcohol where it’s a part of our lives, but as soon as it goes public, we see it as potentially problematic.”
“In my opinion, a lot of the general associations we have with drinking in public are negative, like drunkenness in public, drinking and driving, and drunken hoodlums. All of these things make the news, but they aren’t the only way people drink in public.”
WATCH: Regina could let people drink in parks:
Laws relaxing across Canad
Regina was about to be the next city in Canada to let people drink in a limited number of parks. But on Wednesday, the council decided to put the discussion off until their next meeting in August.
This is because Saskatchewan gave local governments the power to designate public places where people can drink alcohol. Regina’s executive committee voted 6-4 to approve the policy changes, even though some city councillors were worried.
“There’s nothing wrong with a little bit of responsible fun,” Bob Hawkins, Coun. of Ward 2, told CBC Saskatchewan in the past.
Other big cities like Vancouver, Edmonton, and Calgary have recently expanded similar programs to allow drinking in some public parks. In Vancouver, you can drink in 31 parks all year, in 16 more parks in July and August, on seven beaches from June to September, and in some city plazas.
People can drink in some parks in Calgary, where they can book a public picnic table or use one “first come, first served.”You can also drink at some large picnic areas, some fire pits, and some open areas in city parks. This year, the Edmonton City Council voted to let people drink in certain city parks for good.
A law in Montreal called the “picnic law” lets people drink while eating in a picnic area.
A pilot program in Toronto is up for a vote on July 19, and if it passes, people might be able to drink in 20 parks owned by the city over the summer. In April, the city released the results of a survey that showed 44% of Toronto residents liked the idea, while 33% had “some degree of opposition.”
LISTEN: A Toronto council member talks about letting people drink in parks:
Coun. Chris Moise, who is the council member for Toronto Centre and backs the program, recently told CBC thatOntario TodayThat pilots in other Canadian cities have gone “really successfully.” He talked about his own trips abroad, such as one to Amsterdam where he had a drink with friends while sitting on a park bench overlooking the water.
Moise said, “We are making a big deal out of this, and I don’t think it’s necessary.” He pointed out that people already drink in parks.
“People do this in a responsible way all over the city all year long. And I don’t want to be the person who enforces morality. I think people in Toronto are smart enough to make decisions on their own.”
“Considerations for public health
In 2021, researchers at the Canadian Institute for Substance Use Research at the University of Victoria warned municipalities against letting people drink without supervision on public property. They said that there were more risks of harm, like assault and violence based on gender, and that it was harder to enjoy public spaces with other people.
Dr. Tim Naimi, who was in charge of the institute at the time, said in a press release that there were “significant public-health considerations.”
“As we all know, alcohol can hurt your health in a lot of ways and is linked to a wide range of diseases, including several types of cancer, even at low levels,” Naimi said.
“It also makes drinking alcohol seem more “normal,” like we should do it all the time and everywhere.”
Statistics Canada says that the number of alcohol-related deaths in the country has been going up.
The Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction updated their low-risk alcohol use guidelines in January. They said that no amount of alcohol is safe and that men and women should not drink more than two drinks a week.
No surveillance, no trus
Malleck, a medical historian at Brock University, says that the idea of drinking in public has been that it’s okay as long as it’s in a controlled public space, like a bar or restaurant, where someone in charge knows that if rules are broken, they could lose their liquor license. But, he says, there isn’t constant surveillance in public.
“This idea that alcohol itself is a problem, and it is a problem waiting to happen and it can happen to anyone, is embedded in that idea that people need to have an eye kept on them,” he said.
“So it feels like, when we’re being told we can’t drink in public, that we’re being treated like children, but it’s no different than what’s been happening all along, which is that drinking has been distrusted. That people when drunk, have been distrusted.”
He notes that laws around drunk driving, public intoxication, vandalism and violence all still exist. And there are still expectations about public behaviour. For example, he says, someone who chooses to drink in a park still has to get themselves home safely, just as they would if they drank in a bar.
And just because someone can drink in a public park, he says, it doesn’t mean they’re going to get drunk and cause a scene.
“People’s concerns always go to those extremes,” Malleck said. “But you’re as likely to have the book club going to the park and opening a bottle of wine.”