Booze will be legal again next summer at some Penticton beaches and parks

For a third year, you'll be able to drink alcohol at certain beaches and parks in Penticton without breaking the law.

After allowing the public to enjoy liquor at designated parks and beaches earlier in 2021, council voted unanimously to extend the responsible consumption program for another year. The motion passed during at a council meeting held on Dec. 7.

Mayor John Vassilaki recused himself from the vote saying, “because it has to do with liquor and that’s the business I’m in.”

The same parks and beaches will be designated for drinking in 2022, which are all along the waterfronts of Okanagan Lake and Skaha Lake.

READ MORE: You can now have a beer, legally, at Penticton beaches on both Skaha and Okanagan Lake

Councillor James Miller, who called the idea cutting edge, is glad that beach-goers no longer have to smuggle in their beverages.

“I haven’t seen hoards of drunken hooliganism as a result,” Miller said. “What I’m seeing are families enjoying picnics and showing responsibility.”

Drinking in the designated parks and beaches will be legal from May 1 to Oct. 31 between the hours of noon and 8 p.m.

 – This story was corrected at 11 a.m. on April 27, 2022, to say that 2022 will be the third summer alcohol consumption will be permitted on the beaches, not the second. 

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