Brewhalla fest won’t return to Port Moody in 2024 as Rocky Point remains sticking point

Plans to bring Brewhalla back to Port Moody have been scuttled, in part due to what the organizer described as the city’s slightly onerous event requirements.

After running a Brewhalla Beer & Music fest at Inlet Field Park in 2022, Red Door Events expressed interest in returning to the City of the Arts in 2023.

It made sense to hold the celebration of beer a stone’s throw from Brewers Row, explained Red Door Events general manager Lies Reimer.

Pioneer Memorial Park was briefly scheduled to host Brewhalla in the summer of 2023. However, concerns were raised by the Crossroads Hospice Society as well as the Parks and Recreation Commission.

While some of those concerns were assuaged, Reimer said she struggled to find a sponsor and to turn a profit within the confines of the relatively small space, which allows for about 1,500 revelers.

“Our events really thrive when we get up to the 2,500 to 3,000-people mark,” she said. “We just decided it was too much of a risk for us financially.”

The company cancelled and refunded 43 early tickets that had been sold.

Following the Pioneer problems, Reimer said they decided they would only host another Port Moody event if they could do it at Rocky Point Park. That proved to be a tough sell with the city, she said.

“We were in no way going to be able to sway anyone’s mind in letting us go there,” she said. “I kind of left it there and haven’t heard back.”

Generally, the city only allows free or by-donation events at Rocky Point, explained Port Moody’s acting general manager of community services Val Tepes in an email to the Dispatch.

Port Moody also tends to leave gaps between events to help the grass recover, Tepes added.

Discussing challenges holding events in Port Moody, Reimer listed: “quite a lot of administrative requirements” for events.

Brewhalla couldn’t put up anything bigger than a 10 x 10 tent without an engineer visiting the site and inspecting the tent, Reimer said. It’s a small requirement but it pushed up the cost of using the tent up by $2,000 she added.

The city’s risk management strategy seemed: “a little over the top,” she added.

Brewhalla has held events in the City of North Vancouver, the Township of Langley and Chilliwack.

“We’ve never run into something like that about putting up a 20 x 20 marquee tent,” Reimer said.

Port Moody requires a temporary building permit for tents larger than 100 square feet or for any stage built to be more than two feet above the ground, Tepes stated.

Requirements are in place to ensure the events meets health and safety standards and prevents damages to city facilities and natural assets, Tepes concluded.

Reimer maintained there was no ill will toward the city.

“Sometimes it’s just not in the cards,” she said.

The next Brewhalla event is scheduled for North Vancouver on April 19.