Vines Den

Space Sharing Guidelines

• Vines Den is located in the Downtown Eastside. Many people in the Vines community including staff and artists are from or have connections to the Downtown Eastside. Vines as an organization is committed to being in good relationship with the residents of the DTES. When using the space, keep in mind that Vines prioritizes the safety of people that reside in the neighbourhood. If you’re a guest in the DTES, we ask that you reflect on the impact that colonialism, racism, ableism, anti-drug use and anti-houseless people rhetoric have on the residents of this neighbourhood. 

• The Vines Den is primarily by and for people who are Black, Indigenous, racialized, disabled, neurodivergent, mad, queer, Two-Spirit, trans, non-binary, and hold other marginalized identities. We want the Vines Den to be a space where people feel held and respected, and where we can hold difficult conversations when harm is done. We’re committed to navigating conflict in our space in a way that seeks accountability and repair. However, if an individual or group of people are not willing to learn and move from conflict, we may have to ask that they no longer participate in programming held at the Vines Den or sublease the space. 

• Many of us in the Vines community are drug users and have loved ones who are drug users. We recognize the impact of the toxic drug supply and the war on drugs on members of our communities. While the Vines Den is not meant to be a supervised consumption site, we know that drug use may happen in our space. We have safer snorting, injection and smoking kits available in the space, as well as a needle disposal unit and naloxone kits. We also have booklets and infographics on drug destigmatization, safer drug use, and STI’s available for anyone to take. 
  
  Please check out this map for nearby supervised consumption sites, overdose prevention sites, and drug testing services. Vines staff are trained in narcan use, but for your safety, we recommend that you use at one of these sites. They are much better prepared to respond to medical emergencies than us. If that’s not an option for you and you would still like to use in the space, don’t use alone in the bathroom! We ask that those subleasing the space work towards destigmatizing drug use and make use of the tools mentioned above.

• Many in our communities are at risk of experiencing police and institutional violence. As an organization by and for marginalized people, we would like to keep the police out of the space and the neighbourhood. In case of an emergency during a Vines event, please reach out to a staff member. We will assess how best to respond to the situation at hand. If we are required to call 911 for a medical emergency, we will work to ensure that police are not sent. If for any reason police were to be at the Vines Den, please give space for our staff to engage with officers and avoid escalation.
  
  We recognize that those subleasing our space have different levels of preparedness and capacity to respond to emergencies. We ask our community to explore abolition and de escalation. Ultimately, we ask that you do your best to keep you and other community members safe. If police are present in the space, please make sure to document the interaction. 

• Please use the space with care. We’re overjoyed to be able to offer a community hub equipped with the things that make us (and we hope you!) feel at home. We ask that you help us maintain the space and the things in it in good condition.

• The Vines team works very hard to ensure that we’re able to offer spaces and programming for our communities. We would like to humbly request that the respect and generosity we offer is reciprocated. Community spaces and organizations led by a majority queer, trans, disabled and racialized team are few and far between. This work takes a bigger physical and emotional toll on us due to its personal nature. As multiply marginalized people, we are sometimes subjected to demands beyond our capacity. While we remain open to conversations and feedback from our communities, we reserve the right to establish boundaries that maintain our health and well-being.

Accessibility

You can find a word document version of our full Accessibility offerings here.

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Location

825 E Hastings Street

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Nearest Transit Lines

Eastbound

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Westbound

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Parking

There is street parking on E Hastings Street by the Vines Den and across the road:

• No parking 7AM-10AM Mon-Fri
• 2H parking 10AM-6PM Mon-Sat

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Space Accessibility

Entrance

• Please note that entering the space using a wheelchair will require assistance. We're not able to add a permanent ramp to the building, so we've purchased a portable metal ramp. Using it requires someone to place it and put it away after use.
• The building has a fenced entrance 49 inches wide, up 2 steps. The portable metal ramp (29 inches wide, 1:3.7/15° slope) can be placed over the steps.
• The landing is 44 inches long from the end of the ramp to the Vines Den door.
• The Vines Den door opens outwards from the right side and has a clearance of 32 inches.
• There are no steps once inside the Vines Den.

Bathroom

The bathroom is not yet completely accessible. Please read below to see if this bathroom works for you:

• The door opens outwards and has a clearance of 33 inches.
• The bathroom can be accessed on a wheelchair.
• The seat is 15 inches above the ground.
• There are currently no holding bars in the bathroom.
• The sink is outside the bathroom. It is 35 inches tall.

Kitchen

• The kitchen is accessed through the main space. The door has a clearance of 35 inches.
• Countertop is 36 inches above the floor.

Studio and Event Space

• The studio is accessed through the kitchen. The door has a 32-inch clearance.
• The space is large and clear of furniture to allow for different setups.

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Harm Reduction

Much of our work at Vines Art Society is led by and is in solidarity with drug users. Our communities are at high risk of overdose and death due to the toxic drug supply, drug stigma, drug criminalization, and the targeting of community led initiatives to provide safe supply. Drug users are our family, friends, colleagues, and community members. We recognize drug use as a necessity for many folks. With that in mind, we have these items available in our bookshelf:

• Info booklets on harm reduction practices and STIs
• Safer snorting kits
• Safer injection kits
• Safer smoking kits
• Condoms
• Sharps disposal units

Please check out this map for nearby supervised consumption sites, overdose prevention sites, and drug testing services. Vines staff are trained in narcan use, but for your safety, we recommend that you use at one of these sites. They are much better prepared to respond to medical emergencies than us. If that’s not an option for you and you would still like to use in the space, feel free to let us know so we’re ready to respond to emergencies!

Remember to Get Your Drugs Tested and don’t use alone!