British Columbia’s pub and bar sector is hoping that a safe St. Patrick’s Day could help encourage the easing of COVID-19 restrictions.
The Alliance of Beverage Licensees executive director Jeff Guignard said March 17 is historically the busiest day of the year for the industry.
Liquor sales will end across the province at 8 p.m. Wednesday and drinks will be cleared from tables at 9 p.m.
Guignard said minimizing possible transmission, while the province accelerates vaccinations, could fast-track expanding gatherings at bars and pubs.
“Staying safe for this St. Patrick’s Day, the same way we did for Super Bowl, we did for New Year’s Eve, it gets us back one step closer to what normal was,” Guignard said.
“The importance of this day for us is to do this right so we can keep looking at lessening protocols.”
Bar owners are expecting St. Patrick’s Day to look more like a busy weekend than one of the busiest days of the year.
Customers are being asked only to come to a pub or bar with their household or household bubble, while also following the venue’s COVID-19 protocols, which include not leaving the table other than to use the restroom, and a maximum of six people at a table.
Danny Hamilton, the owner of the Wild Rover mobile Irish pub in Victoria, rents out the pub for backyard and community events.
He is optimistic about the province’s decision to allow outdoor gatherings of up to 10 people, but it did not come soon enough to save his business.
“We had five bookings this week and we lost them all, understandably, we support the public health orders,” Hamilton said.
The Vancouver Police Department said it is sending additional officers to the downtown core on Wednesday, just as they would on a Friday or Saturday night during the pandemic.