Downtown Vancouver's Granville entertainment district is a lively party scene on a busy Friday or Saturday night, but the strip has also been plagued with violent incidents — some of them fatal.

Since November, BarWatch, an association for safe bars and nightclubs, has been working on a code of conduct for the 30 or so establishments under its watch.

On Monday, the rules came into effect — chief among them a lifetime ban from all BarWatch establishments on the Granville strip for anyone charged with a violent offence and found to be in possession of a knife or other weapon.

Fighting, verbal abuse, unwanted physical contact, harassment of any kind, drink tampering, theft or bringing concealed liquor into any of Bar Watch's venues will result in a year-long ban.

Barwatch chair Curtis Robinson says the rules created by his team will serve as a reminder to all patrons inside the clubs and bars, as well as outside, that negative behaviour will not be tolerated.

Signs outlining the new code of conduct and its penalties have been placed at all BarWatch locations.

The code of conduct also includes an agreement to maintain respect for the area and property and to never harass or intimidate anyone.

While the policy has been worked on since November with BarWatch and the Vancouver Police Department, Robinson said the tragic death of club promoter Kalwinder Thind in January is the motivating factor behind having these rules cover, not just the inside of the clubs, but also outside on Granville Street.

Victim's family reacts

Thind's sister, Jassicka Bhullar says she's happy to see the new rules put in place but wants to see more.

"There's such a gaping hole in our family and in our hearts. I want everyone to know there should be CCTV cameras on streets, and we need change," Bhullar said.

Earlier this month, Vancouver city council rejected CCTV cameras for the Granville strip, but Robinson and Thind's family say they'll continue pushing for that.

Another big improvement to make the city safer, Robinson said, would be late night transit, so people aren't just lingering on the streets.

"We'd like to see Uber and Lyft, and the big ticket item I'd like to see is late night TransLink transportation for those that come down to the City of Vancouver that don't have that now," Robinson said.

Robinson said he believes the code of conduct is just step one in making the downtown area and Granville Street a safer place.