Alcohol in Champlain Park: Have Your Say

Ottawa City Council unanimously approved a pilot project to allow personal consumption of alcohol in public parks at its meeting of June 11, 2025. Drinking in parks – with some restrictions – has been allowed for a number of years in some other cities, such as Vancouver and Toronto, and Council has agreed to try it in Ottawa for a few months this summer and fall.

[AI generated picture of beer in a plastic cup (no broken glass) on the grass in a park from DreamStudio.ai]

It’s up to councillors to nominate parks in their wards to participate in this pilot project. In his most recent newsletter, Kitchissippi ward Councillor Jeff Leiper wrote that, while he’s “not invested in making this happen,” he would like to choose at least one park in the ward to participate in the pilot project. One of his suggestions was Champlain Park.

The Champlain Park Community Association is not taking an official position on this issue — nor was it asked to by the City — but Coun. Leiper has asked for feedback on this idea. You can send him your thoughts at jeff.leiper@ottawa.ca

Here are the details of the pilot project:

Duration: July 1 to October 31, 2025

Permitted hours: Between 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Prohibited areas: Within 5 metres of a playground, wading pool, baseball diamond and sports field (Note that the greenspace at Champlain Park is not considered an official sports field by the City)

Other information to note:

  • The pilot only allows for personal consumption of alcohol (i.e. a beverage you bring for yourself). It does not allow serving or selling alcohol at the park, which continues to be prohibited without a permit issued by the city and the approval of the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario.
  • Ottawa Police Chief Eric Stubbs says the Ottawa Police Service does not support this initiative. You can read his letter to the city’s general manager of recreation, cultural and facility services here: OPS Chief Letter
  • Ottawa Public Health cautioned against the risks of “normalizing drinking in public spaces”, particularly for youth and young adults. You can read the OPH submission here: OPH Submission
  • The City of Toronto held its own pilot project in 27 parks in 2023. The program was made permanent last year in 45 parks, and another nine were added this year, for a total of 54. Toronto’s city staff reports few issues with its program so far. You can read a recent Toronto staff report on its program here: Monitoring Update: Alcohol in Parks

3 thoughts on “Alcohol in Champlain Park: Have Your Say”

  1. There is no reason for people to drink alcoholic beverages in the Champlain Park area. There is only one treed area that would be comfortable to sit to drink and its around the pool and building. Drink at home, drink down by the river , drink at the local restaurants and hotels but stay away from kids and families. NO TO DRINKING AT CHAMPLAIN PARK….. GORD COCHRANE. OH AND BY THE WAY SURLEY OUR COUNCILLORS HAVE MORE IMPORTANT THINGS TO DO. LIKE CANCELLING THE STEALING OF MORE LANSDOWNE PARK BY YOU KNOW WHO. WHAT A JOKE.

    1. Make sure to let Jeff Leiper know your comments too, via that e-mail in the post. I don’t think he reads these comments.

  2. From city councillor Jeff Leiper’s newsletter #443:

    Late rule change for alcohol in Champlain Park

    As I noted in last week’s newsletter, my intention has been to ask the City to designate Champlain Park as one of those in the city piloting the removal of the prohibition on the consumption of alcohol (read more about that here). Unfortunately, I was late to fill in the form asking the City to do so, so it will be a few more days before it is included in a second round of parks announced officially and the signs go up.

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