Vancouver hospitality group wants better nightlife in city

Vancouver is often knocked as a sleepy, no-fun city.

But the Hospitality Vancouver Association is launching consultations to try and get a sense of what people would like to see in the city when it comes to economic and cultural activity from 5 p.m. to 4 a.m.

“A win, broadly speaking, would be a more holistic approach to nightlife — a better, safer, more inclusive nightlife,” board member Nate Sabine told CityNews.

“Something that’s a little bit more thoughtful than what we’ve seen in the past.”

Formed over 15 years ago, the association advocates for the operators and business interests in the Granville Entertainment District and the Davie Village Corridor in downtown Vancouver.

Consultations in the coming weeks will include polls, one-on-one interviews, and community stakeholder meetings.

Sabine says the association wants to make Vancouver “better on the world stage” and to add to the culture and vibrancy of the city as a whole.

“We see nightlife, and the goal of nightlife and the nighttime economy, as culture through commerce,” he said.

Among the proposals explored in an online survey, is the idea of what has been described as a “night mayor.” It’s a role the organization says exists in cities like New York and Amsterdam and is sometimes referred to as a “nightlife ambassador.”

Sabine is urging Vancouverites to weigh in.

“[The] good, bad, ugly, we want people’s thoughts, ideas, criticisms, experiences — as much as they can fit into this 25-question survey,” he said.

–With files from Martin MacMahon