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Vancouver

restaurants and the vaccine passport

» Dealing with the rules and those who flaunt them

Matthew Fraser Editor-in-Chief

Ds directives from provincial health authorities and generally widespread vaccine acceptance, vaccine passports have been adopted for non-essential leisure activities. Chief amongst the places requiring vaccine passports are restaurants. Opposition to these measures has been expressed through blockades and protests, while their effects on restaurants and their staff have been more subtle and unnoticed. The Other Press spoke with the general manager of a local restaurant to get a feel for how some were handling the change. They requested that we not name them or their restaurant for fear of reprisals. Considering the relative speed with which these measures were announced it was important to ascertain this manager's confidence in enforcing them. When asked, they felt initially unsure but were aware that most businesses were likely in the same uncertain position: “I felt as if it was impromptu and hoped to have enough information when it happened. It was all pretty last minute but that is what l expected from such a short notice rollout.”

This level of uncertainty was partially mitigated by the procedures the restaurant had designed to enforce the new mandates. For this restaurant, the procedure revolves around courtesy and consideration first extended to the customers and hopefully reciprocated towards the restaurant. At this time, they have not had any serious incidents that would further add to the uncertainty. “We thus far have not had any unruly guests. [We've had] some guests so far that don’t have ID or their vaccination card on them that we have had to turn away, but no one has been mad or not understanding about it.”

This restaurant is also quite optimistic about the potential stress and difficulty that could come from these mandates: “I think originally we were all a little nervous with the unknown of how it was going to go, but pretty quickly we realized it was ok.” When it comes to directing the incoming clients, this general manager has elected to do most of the work themselves, despite any potential future conflicts: “I run the door, for the most part, the 5 days a week Tam there... I do expect at some point to come across difficult circumstances but nothing so far and the staff has eased on being nervous as well.”

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However, not all Vancouver restaurants have been able to ease into the new mandates. CTV News reported that Emad Yacoub, president of Glowbal Restaurant Group will be spending $30,000 a month on security as a result of the new mandates and restrictions.

His reasoning revolved around protecting his staff, namely the young

The Stanley Park culling

> Killing a portion of Vancouver's Coyote population

Matthew Fraser Editor-in-Chief

Vcore and much of the surrounding province is known and renowned for its picturesque, natural expanse; but alongside the views and the vegetation are the wild animals that call these areas home. For Stanley Park, this includes a group of coyotes.

Since January, CTV News has reported upwards of 40 separate incidents of biting or nipping that have been attributed to these animals with many of the victims being children. These attacks provoked the BC Ministery of Forests to announce a plan to fence off and restrict access to Stanley Park as well as to begin culling 35 coyotes.

These plans for culling were met with local opposition in the form of a UBC student named Leilani Pulsifer starting a change.org campaign to prevent the culling; the online petition has gained over 23,000 signatures at the time of writing. In Pulsifers’ petition, it is argued that culling coyotes will likely result in increased reproduction or immigration, thusly negating the positives of a decreased

population. It is also argued that coyotes help maintain a balance in the ecosystem to the benefit of all animals therein.

In addition to the petition from Pulsifer, rock superstar Bryan Adams lent his voice through Twitter to protest the culling initiative. Adams protested the culling by pointing out the failures of previous initiatives saying: “Look what

happened when they wiped out the wolves in Yellowstone. They had to rewild them back [sic] to balance the ecosystem.”

Also on Twitter, the group known as Coyote Watch Canada (CWC) commented ona post by Vancouver is Awesome outlining the four Coyotes that had been killed and speculating that less than had originally been estimated may actually

Photo by Billy Bui

¢ Dealing with the rules and those who flaunt them

¢ Killing a portion of Vancouver's Coyote population

..and that's everything!

Photo by Billy Bui

hostess who will be challenged at the door: “Normally it’s their first entry job so they’re young, they’re 19, 20-year-olds. They’re not made to be able to handle this. We don’t want them to handle this.” Unfortunately, other restaurants may have a tougher time than these two restaurants of protecting

their staff.

live in the park. CWC’s tweet argued

that a minimum of 10 Coyotes had been killed and that this may have been one or two families of the canid. On the group's website they state that “people conclude they are seeing multiple coyotes when, in fact, the same coyote is making numerous visits to the same area.”

The issue of feeding Coyotes is addressed in Pulsifers’ petition which calls for stricter enforcement of BC Wildlife Act 1 Section 33.1, which prohibits feeding wildlife. The petition also urges the City of Vancouver to pass a municipal bylaw prohibiting the feeding of wildlife and to ensure personnel are stationed to enforce this new provision via ticketing.

As to who is to blame for the problem, when interviewed by CTV News, Edward Kroc, an assistant professor at UBC, believes that funding given to the park board has not been allocated to maintaining the eco-system, leading it to become a “garbage pit for people to play in.” Kroc also believes that the cull should be halted until the province has better knowledge regarding the animals they aim to kill.