An urban beach, seawater harbour bath, and a green space designed to make a diverse population feel welcome. The City of North Vancouver is embarking on plans that could see big changes to parks in Lower and Central Lonsdale.
Council voted unanimously Monday night (May 17) to kick off two planning processes for Waterfront Park and a new one-hectare park replacing Crickmay/Rodger Burns Park along Lonsdale Avenue between 21st and 23rd streets.
Between now and late fall/early winter, a citizen task force will work with the city on design options for the park at the edge of the planned replacement for the Harry Jerome Community Recreation Centre.
The task force is slated to include planning professionals, but also a representative from the city’s senior population, one child under 12, one youth up to 18, one member from the community at large and one representative from the Squamish Nation.
Specifically, the task force is being asked to apply a lens of inclusivity and diversity when helping to design the park.
The end result should strive to keep most of the mature trees on the site but add more amenities and functionality for the neighbourhood, which will house another 1,000 people and the city’s marquee community centre. Construction on the new centre is to start mid-2022 with completion by 2025.
“Oftentimes lost in the drama that can sometimes be Harry Jerome is the fact that this will be a net increase in park space in the community,” said Coun. Tony Valente. “And it's going to be unified, and I would think much more usable and accessible to Lonsdale.”
Council has budgeted $6.5 million for the project.
The plan for the park should be ready by the winter of 2021, according to staff.
More grandiose, however, are plans for Waterfront Park. Council has now begun a longer-term master plan to help reshape the park as the neighbourhood around it changes.
Formerly an industrial zone, the city was granted the 2.2-hectare plot of land by the province as it approved the development of Lonsdale Quay, the SeaBus, BCIT’s marine campus, and the ICBC headquarters nearby. Lower Lonsdale has grown rapidly and the surrounding buildings may be due for redevelopment, city staff say, so Waterfront Park is in need of some fresh air.
“After 36 years, much of Waterfront Park’s aging infrastructure requires renewal and the site’s limited programming no longer meets the community’s demand for quality park space,” a city staff report states.
The plan may include moving the Chiba Garden and bringing in and repurposing the city’s historic PGE Railway Station, which has been stored in Moodyville for the last seven years.
Mayor Linda Buchanan dangled the possibility of residents and visitors being able to “touch the water,” which could mean an urban beach or seawater harbour baths, similar to ones popular in Denmark.
“I want staff to really be creative and really explore how that could possibly be incorporated into this park plan as much as possible. I've seen some very, very cool pictures,” she said.
Staff expect the master plan to be completed by the end of 2022.
