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Booze in Toronto’s public parks? One councillor says it’s a question of equity under COVID-19

Thestar.com
April 13, 2021
Ben Cohen

Pandemic restrictions have brought a lot of the city’s inequality to light, making it clear who’s equipped by circumstance to weather them best.

That’s prompted one Toronto city councillor this week to revive the debate over drinking alcohol in public parks.

Coun. Josh Matlow (Ward 12), said the pandemic has turned it into an equity issue. With patios closed, Torontonians without the privilege of a backyard or a balcony must now choose between drinking and getting fresh air.

Going to a park and trying to do both incurs a $300 fine, “despite the fact it has no adverse effect on anyone else,” he said.

If Matlow’s new motion is successful, Torontonians may soon be able to drink in parks, a practice long enjoyed throughout Europe, Oceania and Asia, as well as Quebec and more recently Alberta and Vancouver.

Some, however, worry this isn’t the time to relax the laws, fearing that social-distancing rules and judgment-altering drugs won’t make a good cocktail.

At a press briefing Monday, even Mayor John Tory, who said he’s been “positively disposed” to a review of outdoor drinking for years, said he isn’t sure now is the time to discuss it.

“I think it’s something that’s time will come,” he said. “But at the moment my exclusive focus is on the pandemic and trying to put it behind us so we can get back to being in parks, let alone what we do when we get there.”

If approved by the infrastructure and environment committee at the end of April, Matlow’s motion would allow Toronto residents to consume beverages with less than 15 per cent alcohol in public parks and beaches with washrooms from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., seven days a week, beginning May 21.

This would be a pilot project, lasting only until Halloween, but Matlow hopes it will continue beyond that, if results are positive.

“Time has come for this to happen in Toronto,” said Matlow in an interview with the Star. “So many cities around the world -- London, Paris, Sydney, Montreal -- allow adults to have drinks together outdoors. I think a lot of people in those cities look at us and wonder why we’re still debating it.”

Matlow pointed to a similar initiative to allow drinking in parks in the city of North Vancouver, approved last summer, and another proposal for Vancouver passed in February as further examples of Toronto lagging behind.

“It’s absurd for the city to use its limited bylaw enforcement resources to go fine a couple sitting on a blanket having a picnic in a park with a glass of wine,” said Matlow.

It’s also a social justice issue to Matlow and community members he’s spoken with. He said BIPOC residents consistently tell him they are unfairly singled out by police and are more likely to get fined for public drinking than white people are -- even when committing the same offence at the same location in front of the same officer.

In situations like that, white people will often get warnings and Black people will get tickets, Matlow said.

Matlow doesn’t want to do away with all alcohol-related enforcement, however. While beer, wine and cider get a pass, scotch enthusiasts will have to leave their drink of choice behind, lest they face a fine.

Public drunkenness will remain prohibited under Ontario laws, so having a few too many would still get you carted off.

Last summer’s Trinity Bellwoods fiasco, which saw residents turn the park into “a scene out of Coachella ’19,” as the Star’s Emma Teitel put it, is still fresh in the minds of some, who worry legal public drinking will exacerbate COVID-19 irresponsibility and create more work for bylaw enforcement officers.

In its wake, Tory said although he doesn’t object to drinking outside in moderation, what he saw at the park that day, namely people “carrying cases of beer,” was excessive.

“Stop pretending people are responsible,” said Twitter user Renny Ronson in response to Matlow calling for legalized park-drinking. “They are clearly not and that’s why we’re here.” Ronson added a video of a packed Trinity Bellwoods park to illustrate his point.

To critics, Matlow said rules already exist to curb bad behaviour in public. The people who break them will do so regardless of whether or not his motion passes.

“There are still drunk and disorderly laws, there are still laws regulating how many people we can congregate with -- all those rules will stay in place and should be enforced,” he said. “That’s what enforcement should be focused on. My motion will hopefully free up resources to deal with actual problem situations.”

Matlow said rather than create an environment that encourages carelessness, all his motion would do is give people “a way to get through this pandemic better,” he said.

“What my motion does is recognize reality,” said Matlow. “People have been isolated for the past year and want to socialize. It’s far preferable they do it outdoors.”