A pilot project allowing people to drink alcohol in some Toronto parks could soon become permanent.
On Thursday, the City of Toronto’s Community and Economic Development Committee will consider and vote on a staff report on whether people over the age of 19 are allowed to consume alcohol in select green spaces in the city.
The city council must then give final approval at its April meeting.
The Alcohol in Parks Pilot Program, which was approved by the city council last summer, ran from August 2 to October 9 in 27 parks in 13 districts.
City staff, in a 14 page report which included survey findings about the pilot program, found that it was overall a success with only minimal increases in 311 requests for noise, litter or other problems from the parks involved.
A survey also found that a large majority of residents support allowing alcohol in parks with a “high level of satisfaction among park visitors, few problems arising, and minimal operational impacts.”
It also noted that 92 percent of respondents who visited a pilot park were satisfied during their visit, while 90 percent felt safe. About 80 percent of respondents said people who chose to drink in the park were “considerate.”
City staff recommends that alcohol be permanently allowed in the 27 parks included in the pilot program and that the program be expanded to include at least one park per district.
Last summer none of the participating parks were located in Etobicoke and only a few were in North York.
Toronto-Danforth County. Paula Fletcher, who had five parks in her neighborhood during the pilot program, said that overall she believes the pilot program was a success and should be made permanent.
“The sky did not fall. Everyone thought, ‘Oh, there will be big parties.’ There will be praise. There will be barrels and everything will happen in those parks. It didn’t happen,” he told CP24 Thursday morning.
Eligible parks must have permanent or temporary restrooms, as well as seasonal drinking water on site. They must be at least 1.5 hectares and not adjacent to schools, if the park is less than 3.0 hectares, and cannot be located on the seafront.
They must also have the approval of the local councilor and written confirmation.
Alcohol cannot be consumed in outdoor pools and terraces or within a two-meter radius around playgrounds, paddling pools, splash areas, skate parks, BMX parks and artificial and natural ice rinks.
Speaking to CP24, Fletcher said she was “pleasantly surprised” by the survey results and support for the initiative so far.
“So I think it’s really telling that this should have been done a long time ago. Everyone there said everyone was considerate of their drinking. Everyone in the park felt safe,” she said.
“So in this pilot there was nothing. There was simply no problem. It was very cold. It was great. …And I think coming out of the pandemic, people realized that we could just get together and have a beer in the park and they did that. So now it’s pretty normal behavior.”
For a complete list of parks included in the initial pilot, follow this link.
With files from Bryann Aguilar of CP24.