On September 7, the Granville pedestrian zone hosted an end-of-summer Labour Day block party. The pedestrian zone is now closed but was marked by a block party called Granville DJ festival, at the start of September.
The Granville pedestrian zone, located on Granville Street between West Georgia and Davie Street, was originally established for the FIFA World Cup. As a result of a City Council vote on July 2, the zone’s permit was extended until September 7, with the street opening to traffic September 12. Its last operating weekend was marked by the Granville DJ festival, a free, fully licensed event with a ticketed VIP section organized by Dave Kershaw, owner of Cabana Nightclub. The Peak spoke to Kershaw to learn more.
“When they announced that the pedestrian zone was going to remain closed until Labour Day, I just thought, hey, maybe they’ll let me do a block party,” said Kershaw. He shared that 12 DJs were featured for this weekend-long event, all of which were local.
The event’s headliners were Rashad Rawkus and Olly Watt, with DJs Nikky and Sam Hampton performing directly before the headliners as the main supporting act. The music styles of the performing DJs spanned “hip hop, dance, Top 40, Latin, house, and EDM,” according to the event’s website. Though the event was free, there were also paid passes being sold for the Suntail Tequila Garden VIP section.
Many of the businesses on the 1100 block coordinated with Kershaw for the party. Kershaw did a setlist focused on pop, cabana, and hip hop, while Union Latinos put on “reggaeton and Latin style music.” He shared that the owner of Andonis additionally did “more of a house music vibe.”
This free event was open to anyone over 19, “ who just likes to do special events, like to go party, and dance, and enjoy Vancouver,” said Kershaw. He shared, “We had a ton of fun during FIFA.”
“Granville almost got a refresh on its brand because FIFA was so much fun and so successful. And we just want to keep that positive momentum going.” Kershaw shared that sales in August have been nearly double compared to 2025, despite anticipating a drop in sales post-FIFA.
“Granville Street’s back, baby! We’ve seen that since FIFA ended.”
