Morinville residents will be able to chug a beer as they hit a home run this summer under a pilot program to allow alcohol in three town parks.
Morinville council approved the 2021 Alcohol in Parks Pilot Initiative June 22 as part of its consent agenda.
The Alberta government changed the province’s liquor laws last year to allow people to drink alcohol in designated park zones if the owner of the park allowed it. Cities such as Edmonton and Calgary have launched pilots to let people drink in certain parks.
Morinville enforcement services supervisor William Norton and fire chief Brad Boddez proposed to have Morinville undertake a similar pilot this summer.
Under the pilot, guests at Skyline Baseball Diamonds within the Skyline Park area, the Morinville Fish and Game Pond, and Heritage Lake picnic sites would be able to consume alcohol in designated zones between 11 a.m. and 11 p.m. The parks would have signs indicating where alcohol was allowed, and drinkers would be required to follow all other provincial drinking laws.
Speaking to council during committee of the whole June 15, Boddez and Norton said the town picked the ball diamond for the pilot as people were already drinking there, and Heritage Lakes because it was popular for picnics. Coun. Scott Richardson suggested adding the Fish and Game Pond to the pilot as another frequent picnic spot.
Norton said he did not expect to see any spike in trash, noise, or drinking and driving complaints due to the pilot, although peace officers would be patrolling each site.
The pilot runs from July 1 to Sept. 6, 2021. Council was to get a report on the pilot’s results later this year. See www.morinville.ca/en/things-to-do/parks-and-trails.aspx for details.
