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Vancouver Once Again Earns Its “No Fun City” Moniker

By Jusneel Mahal /

Toronto Raptors public viewing parties are taking over Ontario. Ten cities have reportedly been approved to have free public viewing events for the NBA finals. Fans across the province now have the opportunity to watch and support the Raptors in a large group setting.

Ontario’s cities have been inspired by Toronto’s Jurassic Park, which is a large tailgating zone outside the Raptor’s home arena where fans have cheered on and watched their favourite team on a jumbo-sized screen.

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But what about the rest of the country? So far, only one non-Ontario locale (Halifax) has been able to secure its own version of Jurassic Park. (One wonders, naturally, what they’re going to call it.)

The city of Vancouver teased the idea of having a public viewing area for the finals in downtown Vancouver. But earlier this week, the city put out a public statement informing everyone that they are bailing on this idea.

“While we reviewed plans for a potential viewing event, we were not able to identify a location that was suitable and available for a series up to seven games following the eastern conference final that ended May 25,” the statement read in part.

So the city didn’t have enough time to “plan and execute” this event? Did the Raptors NBA finals appearance come out thin air? It wasn’t like they were in a two-week series where they were one of two teams in their conference that could make the finals…oh wait they were.

We were capable of holding multiple public viewing events during the Vancouver Olympics and when the Canucks made the NHL finals in 2011. Right now, the Raptors success is the only bright spot for Vancouver sports fans, whose lives have been recently dominated by the controversial and faltering Whitecaps and the inability of the Canucks to make the playoffs or create a compelling jersey.

But not everyone in Vancouver’s local government was against this idea. Vancouver councillor Michael Wiebe tweeted his support for a Jurassic Park West outside the Vancouver Art Galley. Wiebe later tweeted that he was unable to make the viewing zone happen in Vancouver.

Oh well, I guess we will have to settle for our TVs at home. Anyone got cable?

Jusneel Mahal

Jusneel Mahal