False Creek's Habitat Island closed temporarily due to safety concerns

Public drinkers will need to find a new place to hang out while their island of choice gets some repairs.

Habitat Island (AKA Beer Island) in False Creek has been closed until further notice due to decay in one of the tall poles on the island, which the Vancouver Park Board fears might fall and injure someone.

The problem wooden pole on Habitat Island. (Vancouver Park Board / Twitter)

The artificial island is located in Southeast False Creek, just west of the Olympic Village, and is connected to the mainland by a gravel land bridge during low tide and a rock pathway at high tide.

It was built for the 2010 Olympics as an urban sanctuary where birds can nest but quickly developed a reputation as the ideal place to drink beer during the warmer months.

It is unclear how soon the decaying pole can be removed because a Northern Flicker bird is nesting inside of it and only once the bird’s nest has been removed can the pole be taken down and the island reopened.

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