Editor's note: DNV has allowed more time for public feedback. The new deadline for providing public input on the two plans is today, July 12. Click here to share your thoughts on Inter River Park turf improvements.
The District of North Vancouver will soon be deciding on whether Inter River Park should be upgraded with one turf sports field or two.
The North Vancouver Football Club, which has roughly 3,600 members, is lobbying hard for the two-field option, although some area residents are urging council to find another location that won’t result in the loss of a beloved wooded area.
The plan would see the existing pitch replaced with a turf one with the possibility of a second regulation size sports field to the south.
A 2017 needs assessment by the district found Inter River should add a second turf field as the one at Seylynn Park will eventually be displaced. Adding a second field at Inter River would also open up the park to tournaments and year-round, all-weather play.
A new road and parking lots would also be required, which the district estimates would bring a peak demand of 162 vehicles per hour. The district would also carry out environmental improvements including repairs to the riparian area of Lynn Creek, removal of invasive species and replanting 390 trees.
NVFC president Stuart Ince said North Vancouver is long overdue to get more turf fields.
“North Vancouver has the lowest ratio of turf pitches to population and playing population in the whole of the Lower Mainland, so we’re the paupers of the recreational sporting community,” he said. “We simply don’t have enough facilities to put our kids through the winter and through the springtime.”
The club’s members would like to see the plan also include a clubhouse containing change rooms, a concession stand, storage and washrooms, which would make it an ideal location for tournaments.
The district would benefit by becoming a tournament destination, which would bring visitors to local hotels, restaurants and businesses, Ince added.
But the two-field option would result in a soccer pitch-sized swath of trees to be cut, something area residents are hoping to avoid. The wooded area is already in heavy use by nearby kids, dog walkers and elementary schools, said area resident Jennifer Meilleur.
“It would be a pretty significant negative impact to access to nature and quality of life for local residents. We can’t do all those things with an artificial turf field,” she said.
The area is also home to a diverse array of trees and wildlife that also shouldn’t be displaced, Meilleur added.
“I think everybody appreciates the need for more fields. Everybody’s got kids who are in sports and they know it’s a challenge. I think that’s a point that everybody can agree on,” she said. “I’m not sure we can get agreement that cutting down forests to make way for turf fields is the right approach. Meilleur said the district’s consultation process seems to be skewed towards soccer field users, not the wider community.
The district is taking public feedback on the two plans through July 5 at dnv.org/turf-fields.
