If the sun's out on a Saturday, the street in front of Bent Stick Brewing is plastered with people, co-owner Cole Boyd told Taproot.
"Specifically on weekends in the summer, if the weather's at all nice, the street is nuts," Boyd said in an interview at the Bent Stick taproom. "Like, it's almost not good to have cars on (the street), because there's so many people that are actively using this area."
That's why he and his neighbours at Shiddy's Distilling and Rumpus Room, Blind Enthusiasm Brewing Company, and the yet-to-open Yeasty Boys Brewing, are working with the City of Edmonton to establish an entertainment district on 78 Avenue NW, a particularly dense node of what's called Happy Beer Street, which stretches along 99 Street between Whyte Avenue and 60 Avenue. Mile Zero Dance, (a venue on 78 Avenue that offers intoxication in the form of dance and theatre instead of drinks), is part of the entertainment district plans, too.
In 2024, the city set up entertainment districts downtown on a stretch of Rice Howard Way and in 2025, it established another on a portion of 104 Street. In both cases, the street is closed to vehicle traffic and patrons can consume food and alcohol that they purchase from adjacent restaurants as they walk along the street.
Establishing a district on 78 Avenue would "free up pedestrian space for people to use the street on those weekends (when it runs), but also open up avenues of collaboration for (the breweries). We can maybe put some light music on the patio, we can do markets, we can really make it a hub for entertainment and use our beers to sort of facilitate that," Boyd said.
"For Edmonton to have a brewery-centric spot where you can walk out the door with your beer and have it on the street and listen to a street performer, or watch a Mile Zero dance performance on the street — stuff like that would be something that would draw more people from outside of our neighborhood to the street, but also from outside of our city to Edmonton."
Boyd said he hopes the district will be in place by this fall. There are still municipal procedures to go through, including community engagement.
The closure to vehicles would result in the loss of some car parking, but Boyd said he isn't worried about that, as many customers walk, bike, or take transit to the area. "We already don't have a ton of parking and it hasn't really been an issue," he said.
The street is nearly unrecognizable compared to even 10 years ago. It's transformed from a street with mostly vacant light industrial buildings directly beside the CPKC rail right of way to an essential stop on any brewery tour. The city is even building a bike lane along 100 Street to connect the street to the active transportation network in Strathcona. The proposed entertainment district is a natural next step for the up-and-coming area, Boyd said.
The brewers along this portion of Happy Beer Street want the ability to close the road to vehicle traffic and invite their patrons to mingle in the street. (Stephanie Swensrude)
The city requires entertainment districts that close streets to vehicles to pair the closure with programming. In the downtown districts, the Edmonton Downtown Business Association takes care of that, but Boyd said the 78 Avenue brewers haven't yet determined who will run programming. However, there is already a precedent for closing 78 Avenue to vehicles: About once a month, a Grand Night Market takes over that street with vendors, food trucks, and music.
Ward papastew Coun. Michael Janz said the length of time needed to establish an entertainment district is frustrating. "A year to crack a beer on 104 Street, that's ridiculous," Janz told Taproot. "Look up 'red tape' in the dictionary — you'll find that example." At the May 13 urban planning committee meeting, Janz asked administration if council could hand over authority for establishing entertainment districts to the city manager's office, thereby removing the need for council to vote on a bylaw. However, Alberta Gaming, Liquor, and Cannabis requires a council vote, but administration is working with the provincial body to remove that requirement for future districts.
Janz thinks other streets in his ward have the potential to host an entertainment district, like 83 Avenue between Calgary Trail and Gateway Boulevard, home to Pip, Pals, and the Old Strathcona Farmers' Market. "There could be so many. I know of other businesses who want to have more block parties, who want to do more activations, who want to find a way to invite their neighbors in," he said.