Mayor and premier dispute who has power to change public drinking rules

Hamilton's mayor doubled down on the weekend insisting the city didn't have the power to change public drinking rules.

But Mayor Fred Eisenberger backed off late Monday following more comments from Premier Doug Ford.

Our staff called him and told him," Ford said at a Queen's Park briefing Monday, responding to a question about why Eisenberger was insisting cities do not have the power to allow drinking in parks.

I guess he's trying to direct it away from himself and the council."

The issue arose after The Spectator reported on Aug. 7 that Hamilton police handed out 369 public drinking tickets between March 12 and July 31 this year. A local physician argued people shouldn't be fined $100 for sipping suds in parks during the pandemic; that relaxing public drinking rules could serve as a risk-mitigation strategy that deters people from drinking indoors in close quarters, potentially spreading COVID.

Ford slammed the city over the tickets on Friday.

In a weekend interview with CHCH, Hamilton's mayor responded to Ford's criticism, saying tweaking public drinking rules is in the hands of the province, ironically."

I do appreciate that the premier wants to lay it in the lap of the city," Eisenberger said. If he wants to give the city the veto power over that I'd be happy to have it, but in the meantime, clearly it's the provincial act (the Liquor Licence Act) that the police are following."

The province says it gave municipalities that authority - or veto power" - more than a year ago.

The mayor was scheduled to speak with The Spec on Monday, but cancelled after Ford's press conference.

In a statement, Eisenberger said his earlier comments stemmed from nuance" that was unclear" relating to the existing Liquor Licence Act (LLA) and a not-yet-in-force 2019 act. I appreciate the clarification from the premier's office," the statement read. The mayor thanked the premier for giving municipalities authority to make changes.

Still, city council is not currently exploring" allowing drinking in parks, as their first priority is the health and safety of our community."

Due to these unprecedented times, our local restaurants have suffered greatly," Eisenberger's statement said. Many of them have erected outdoor patio areas for people to relax and enjoy a drink outdoors safely. I encourage Hamiltonians to support local and visit a bar or restaurant to enjoy a drink outside."

Meanwhile, no one knows how many people have actually been ticketed for drinking in parks.

Police - who are responsible for handing out tickets - say they only track the total number of Liquor Licence Act (LLA) violations, not specific sections of the act. The act includes sections on drinking in public, underage drinking, carrying open alcohol and having open alcohol in a car, among others.

The city says it doesn't track the reason the ticket was issued beyond which subsection of the LLA it pertained to - public drinking falls under Section 31 (2) of the act, which includes having liquor in an open container or consuming it anywhere other than a licensed premises, home or private location.

Eisenberger told CHCH that the tickets are largely around beer parties that are being organized in different locations where too many people are gathering too closely."

A city spokesperson said 157 of the 369 tickets were issued to people with no fixed address.

Katrina Clarke is a Hamilton-based reporter at The Spectator. Reach her via email: katrinaclarke@thespec.com