Grand unveiling
The long-awaited improvements and redevelopment of Grandview Park on Commercial Drive are completemuch to the chagrin Im sure of the drug users who formerly called the tiny green space home.
Improvements to the 0.89-hectare park include a new playground, stage, a sport/bike polo court, field house with accessible washrooms, lawns, gardens, pathways and a restored cenotaph area.The $2-million project was supported in part by the federal government through the Recreational Infrastructure Canada program. The official opening is Sept. 17 at 11 a.m. Politicians attending include Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³»South MP Wai Young, Mayor Gregor Robertson and park board vice-chair Constance Barnes, who from what I can see on Facebook spends every waking moment attending official functions. Once the speeches are over, park visitors can enjoy a barbecue, cake, entertainment and childrens activities.
Teepees, etc.
Its better than dinosaurs.
Park board chair Aaron Jasper is asking the board to consider turning the area that once housed the childrens farmyard into a First Nations cultural and educational centre with a focus on raising awareness of the history between Vancouvers aboriginal peoples and Stanley Park.
I mention dinosaurs because in 2007, out of the blue, parks staff proposed placing huge animatronic dinosaurs in Stanley Park in the same area, much to the horror of the Stanley Park Ecology Society. But clearer heads prevailed and the Stanley Park Dinosaur Experience never came to fruition. (At the time, I heard the idea was cooked up at a party.)
The farmyard area has been the location for the Klahowya Village First Nations display, Spirit Catcher Train and aboriginal, cultural demonstrations for the past two summers, which have been a great success, according to Jasper.
Jaspers bringing a motion to the park board at the first regular meeting of the fall session Sep. 19, asking staff to find a qualified party to develop and operate a First Nations cultural centre as a permanent fixture in Stanley Park at no cost to taxpayers.
From the feedback we got from locals and tourists, Klahowya Village was a great experience, Jasper says of the temporary display that closed last week. In a nutshell, I think this is a great time to build on our relationship with our First Nations.
Jasper says based on the success of the 2010 Olympic Games, the timing is right for the park board to work with the regions three host First Nations, the Squamish, Musqueam and Tsleil-Waututh.
Jasper says if his motion is approved Monday, parks staff will approach local First Nations organizations about a possible partnership.
Niki five
Vision Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³»announced a fifth candidate for park board this week.
Niki Sharma, a Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³»lawyer with experience in aboriginal and environmental issues, will join Visions team of candidates seeking a park board seat in the November civic election.
In a press release about the announcement, Mayor Gregor Robertson took a shot at former park board commissioner and NPA mayoral candidate Suzanne Anton. [Sharmas] commitment to making our community facilities and parks more affordable and accessible, as well as her long-standing work on social justice and environmental issues, stands in direct contrast to the out-of-touch priorities of Suzanne Anton and the NPA, said Robertson.
As well, in June Jamie Lee Hamilton told me shed be seeking a nomination for park board with the Green Party, but last week sent me a note to say that is no longer the case.
Twitter: @sthomas10
