PNE just says no to idea of hosting 4/20 rally

Dreams of moving Vancouver’s 4/20 rally to the Pacific National Exhibition’s grounds are going up in smoke.

Following previous suggestions by 4/20 organizers that the only venues able to host the growing rally were either Sunset Beach or the PNE, officials at the latter venue have shut down the idea.

“After recent reports that the organizers of the 4/20 event in Vancouver are interested in moving the event to Hastings Park, it is important that the operators of the site, the Pacific National Exhibition (PNE), clarify the challenges of entering a rental agreement with the 4/20 event,” read a statement put out by the venue’s management on Friday.

That comes after 4/20 organizers of the rally were billed this week for a portion of the nearly quarter-million bill that came with the protest-cum-rally on April 20. The city’s final total for the cost of the event was $245,379 this year.

The park board had previously declined to grant the event a permit, something that would have made it easier for the park board to recoup its costs.

Organizers also told CTV this week there’s nothing left in the budget to cover the bill, as budgeting is done beforehand.

In its media release this week outlining the cost breakdown, the city and park board maintained they would “continue to work with organizers to find an appropriate venue for any future 4/20 events.”

But the PNE — a location previously suggested by Dana Larsen, pot advocate and member of the 4/20 organizer team — suggests moving the rally to the PNE grounds would be close to impossible.

“As one of the busiest event sites in Canada ... the PNE has a number of criteria for every potential event organizer that must be met prior to securing space,” the statement read. It goes on to list the requirements:

Availability: Currently, several events — including two trade shows, a children’s gymnastics program, and a movie production — have already booked in at the Pacific Coliseum, the Garden Auditorium, the Forum Building, and the Rollerland Building for April 20, 2018.

Insurance: Event organizers must be able to secure insurance and liability coverage.

Workers’ Compensation Board approval: Events booked at the PNE must meet WCB requirements, including the right to not be exposed to second hand smoke. The PNE also notes that all events on site are non-smoking, except for small designated smoking areas that meet WCB and city requirements.

Union priority: The PNE hosts a number of unions on-site and those unionized workers have the legal right to work any on-site events. Event organizers are obligated to cover the cost of employing those workers.

Expenses: Event organizers are required to post deposits before the event in order to guarantee payment of subcontractors and suppliers.

Proximity to residential area: “When speculation about this event moving to the PNE became public, we received significant contact from the community, plus formal contact from the two community organizations and 100% of the feedback was asking the PNE not to rent the site to this event.”

In November 2016, 4/20 organizers met with the PNE team about the 2017 rally.

“During this meeting and subsequent conversations, the PNE outlined the six points stated above and after reviewing the operational and business plans of the event, the PNE declined to pursue booking this event,” the statement said.

“Assuming the above mentioned challenges do not materially change, the PNE does not expect that decision to change in the future.”