There is a lot of chatter about the FIFA World Cup 26™, but we really don’t know for sure how this will impact our city. So far, all of the outward hype is positive, but what about the behind-the-scenes whispers? Is Vancouver ready for the world to descend upon us from June 13th to July 7th next year? 

BC Place Vancouver will host seven matches from the FIFA World Cup 26™, including Canada’s second and third group fixtures and two knockout games in the latter stages of the tournament.

How many tourists will be coming to Vancouver? Will we have enough hotel rooms to accommodate all of them? We have the same number of hotel rooms as we did in 2002, with 23 hotel properties currently in the pipeline. However, these are more of a longer-term plan and won’t be ready for 2026.

Rising Tide was pleased to attend the Greater Vancouver Board of Trade luncheon on June 10th with the esteemed speakers Victor Montagliani, FIFA VP and CONCACAF President, Chief Wayne Sparrow of the Musqueam Indian Band, Royce Chwin of Destination Vancouver and Jessie Adcock from the City of Vancouver.

This event provided a high-level overview of FIFA and its potential impact on tourism, hospitality, and the city as a whole. Now that we are one year out, they are not ready to share details about what the opportunities will be for our community and local businesses. They addressed that they would be focusing on safety and security, how to handle the influx of visitors at YVR and BC Place Stadium and that there will be the official fan site at the PNE.

Despite not knowing all of the details just yet, Royce from Destination Vancouver said, “We know how to host… We know how to welcome the world…”

We have done this before, so we look forward to another spectacular event for Vancouver—arguably the largest event we have ever hosted!

If you need guidance with your liquor licensing, cannabis licensing, compliance issues or business operations, get in touch with us! 

Contact Rising Tide

In addition to our offices in Vancouver, Kamloops, Vancouver Island and Toronto, Rising Tide now has a new office in Prince George, serving Northern BC.

We are pleased to announce as well that Laura Scagliati has joined the RTC team as a Senior Licensing Specialist. Laura comes to us from the LCRB where she has developed extensive knowledge of licensing rules and regulations and served as the LRS and liquor licensing expert for the past 9 years.

We are excited to have her level of expertise added to our talented team of consultants at Rising Tide. Here are our years of service in the industry. 

Bert Hick – 37 years plus 2 years as General Manager of the LCRB

Edna Lizotte – 10 years

Kim Norbury – 30 years

Susan Mander – 18 years 

Christina Beheeler – 6 years

Rising Tide remains committed to optimizing your business growth potential through licensing opportunities and strategic operational guidance. 

We are here to help

If you need guidance with your liquor licensing, cannabis licensing, compliance issues or business operations, get in touch with us! 

Contact Rising Tide

The recent report by @pacificsolutionscontracting commissioned by the @bcrfa and the BC Coalition for Affordable Dependable Energy, shows that the cost could be upwards of $800,000 for an existing restaurant to convert to electricity from natural gas. This number includes all aspects of the process from hiring the experts required, new equipment, renovations, and installations, plus the revenue lost during the business interruption while all that is taking place.

The BCRFA is asking municipal governments to take this evaluation seriously and put the brakes on the zero carbon step code regulations that would ban the use of natural gas in new buildings ahead of provincial 2030 targets. Not only does this seriously question the economic impact on restaurants, but the feasibility of the proposal itself. Restaurants in 2024 do not have $800K sitting around in the bank; quite the opposite in fact. 

Rising Tide Consultants support our friends at the BCRFA, calling for a common-sense approach to energy which includes electricity, natural gas and renewable natural gas. 

For the full article: https://www.biv.com/news/hospitality-marketing-tourism/bc-restaurants-could-not-afford-natural-gas-ban-report-8892145

Rising Tide Consultants is pleased to announce that we offer design services to support our valued clients! By providing professionally drafted floor plans in AutoCad or Sketchup, you no longer need to engage an outside designer or pay your architect to do your floor plan drawings. This allows you to save time and money by streamlining the design process in presenting your drawings for your architect’s approval and facilitating a smooth submission to the city.

Rising Tide’s very own Meagan Morris completed the Residential Interiors program (DDA) at the University of Alberta and has extensive experience designing for residential and commercial projects across North America.

We are currently working on multiple projects for premiere Downtown Vancouver hotel locations. Get in touch to see how we can assist with your design needs.

New City of Vancouver hospitality working group to address longstanding policy issues

“I am very pleased to see that the City of Vancouver is committed to real change for the hospitality industry. It is an honour to be a part of this working group and I look forward to the collaborative effort to streamline processes and eliminate costly delays. We are all committed to seeing progress and advancement with antiquated laws and regulations that need to be updated. I wish to thank Mayor Ken Sim and the Vancouver City Councillors for their support in taking a hard look at longstanding policy issues that have challenged so many of our clients.” – Bert Hick, President & Founder – Rising Tide Consultants

For Immediate Release
June 14^th, 2023

Vancouver, BC – On Friday, Mayor Ken Sim was joined by members of Vancouver City Council and representatives from the hospitality sector to announce the creation of a new City of Vancouver hospitality sector working group.

“With today’s announcement of a new hospitality working group, we have an opportunity to help create a better, more vibrant, and prosperous future for our local economy,” said Councillor Lisa Dominato. “We’ve heard a clear demand for policy change from local businesses and this working group is an important first step.”
 
The working group is a City-staff led initiative, overseen by the Development, Building, and Licensing department. Its members include city staff and representatives from the hospitality sector. The working group’s goals are to identify, adjust, and eliminate red tape that present challenges to businesses in the sector.

“The hospitality sector is critical to the local economy,” continued Dominato. “That’s why the City is inviting members of the hospitality industry to participate in this collaborative working group, with a clear goal of making life easier for our local businesses.

While certain recommendations from the working group may require Council approval, the direct link between industry and City staff will allow policy change to occur at a faster rate.

“Vancouver is open for business and its time for our City to lose its “no fun” reputation once and for all,” said Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim. “We all want to see these businesses succeed and we want the City of Vancouver to play a big role in helping make that happen.”
 
The working group has informally met once already and will continue to meet throughout the summer with the goal of providing an update in the Fall on progress being made.

Media Contact:

Taylor Verrall

Director of Communications, Office of the Mayor

604-404-5651

taylor.verrall@vancouver.ca