There Are Calls For A New August Stat Holiday In Toronto To Celebrate A Booze-Friendly Law

Ahead of the August long weekend, for some people, one day off in the month just isn't quite enough.

The Civic Holiday is set for Monday, August 7, but ahead of what will be the second last long weekend of summer 2023 (if you can believe it), there are calls for a new stat holiday to be adopted — but only in the city of Toronto.

The proposed municipal stat holiday is on August 2 and it would be called Picnic Day.

if you're wondering why, well, here's you go:

"The date coincides with the launch of Toronto’s Alcohol in Parks Pilot Program, and would establish the historic occasion as an annual day of rest, celebration and alfresco dining," reads a press release from Wilda, the maker of bee-friendly natural spritzer that's based out of a farm in Prince Edward County.

August 2 is when Toronto's new pilot program begins, allowing people of age to drink alcohol to enjoy some booze at 27 different City of Toronto parks.

The new law has been mostly met with a massive shrug seeing as many people already choose to drink in Toronto parks full well knowing it's against the law and even city officials told the Canadian Press that no one has been ticketed for illegal drinking in parks so far this year.

But, sure, let's try for a holiday out of it!

According to Wilda, this new municipal stat holiday in Toronto would launch on August 2, 2023, and would then be marked on the first Wednesday of August for years to come, because who doesn't love a mid-week day off to celebrate drinking? The company even notes on a rainy Wednesday, "the holiday would be postponed to the next sunny day." Genius!

Now, it's worth noting that, as it stands, the city's Alcohol in Parks Pilot Program is currently set to end on October 9, 2023.

“Picnics are essential to summer, and ice-cold natural spritzers—or beer or wine—are essential to picnics,” said Wilda co-founder Ben Leszcz in a statement. “We already cancel work for Victoria, Boxing and Civic. Now, as we witness this historic decriminalization of park jams, it feels appropriate to honour the milestone by finally giving picnics their due.”

While you'd be hard-pressed to find anyone who would say no to enjoying a nice park drink on a mid-week summer day in Toronto, with the proposed date for Picnic Day fast approaching, it seems incredibly unlikely this new stat holiday will become a reality.

Narcity has reached out to the City of Toronto and will report back if, by some miracle, Toronto is rewarded with two holidays in the span of less than a week.

Otherwise, just hang on a few days and enjoy a (legal) drink at a city park over the Civic long weekend.

This article's cover image was used for illustrative purposes only.