New Westminster is “falling behind” in the amount of park space when compared to some “comparable” cities.
At a March 3 workshop, council received an update on the parks and recreation plan - People, Parks, and Play!: Connections for All - which is now in its second round of public engagement. Community members have an opportunity to share feedback on the plan at a pop-up event on Saturday, March 8 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at təməsew̓txʷ Aquatic and Community Centre (65 East Sixth Ave.).
Mitchell Reardon, director of planning with Happy Cities, said pop-up events are intended to ensure the plan is “getting things right” and gather input so adjustments can be made as the plan is developed.
“At these events, we offer games and food and other compelling activities to help draw people in and spend a few minutes with us,” he said. “And in doing so, we seek to enhance community representation.”
Growing city
Erika Mashig, the city’s deputy director of park policy and planning, said the update to the 2008 parks and recreation comprehensive plan is happening at the same time the city is working to meet its housing mandates from the province, which presents the dual challenge of land constraints and expedited population growth.
“Our update is very timely, as we're speaking in the community about critical issues related to growth, including meeting the current needs of our community, as well as the future needs of the growing population. That includes 25,000 new residents projected in the next decade,” she said. “We're also talking about prioritizing parks and recreation investments for the next 10 years, to 2035, and envisioning our parks and recreation system for 25 years, out to 2050.”
Mashig said the feedback from the current engagement initiatives will help inform a 10-year implementation strategy, which will be part of the final plan. She said the implementation strategy will provide a technical framework for phasing new and renewed assets, including when, where and how much it will cost to deliver those amenities and facilities.
Growing the city’s inventory of parkland is a key challenge, Mashig said.
“In addition to land acquisition, we are also exploring creative solutions in the plan, including optimizing existing parks through master plans, designing multi-use spaces, utilizing vacant or underutilized land, co-locating facilities rather than stand-alone facilities, exploring airspace parcels, land swaps and partnerships, integrating urban and linear parks into areas of high growth, maximizing riverfront opportunities,” she said.
New amenities
A report to council about the proposed plan outlined some of the new amenities being proposed to keep up with past and future population growth. These amenities include:
- two artificial turf fields
- six to eight multi-sport courts (for pickleball, tennis, basketball, lacrosse, etc.)
- one new covered multi-sports courts
- one all-wheel park
- two dog off-leash areas
- one disc golf course
- three community gardens
- two water play areas
- three picnic shelters
- five to seven playgrounds
- four beach/grass field volleyball courts
- one multipurpose recreation track (non-regulation for informal uses).
Parkland shortage
At its recent workshop, council heard that New Westminster has 184.97 hectares of park land. This includes traditional active parks (city parks, community parks, and neighbourhood parks) and other park classifications, including green space/nature parks, linear parks, and urban parks.
The parks plan will include efforts to expand parkland by identifying underutilized or vacant lands with public space potential.
Catherine Berris, a landscape architect and community planner with Urban Systems, said New Westminster had 2.04 hectares of active parks per 1,000 people in 2007.
“In 2024, which is essentially now, it's at one hectare per 1,000, and that's because the population has gone up so much,” she said.
According to Berris, New Westminster would have 0.8 hectares per 1,000 population in the next 10 years, given the city’s projected population growth, if it were not to get any new parks within the next 10 years
“The current target is 2.2 hectares per 1,000, just for reference,” she said.
As part of the analysis done in the development of the parks and recreation plan, consultants also looked at parkland supply for all kinds of parkland. She said New Westminster’s parkland supply was reviewed to “comparable” communities that are similarly urban without a lot of greenfield space (Vancouver, Burnaby, Coquitlam, City of North Vancouver and Victoria) were based on their 2021 census data, so the numbers may be slightly inflated compared to today.
“But in any case, the average of the comparables is 4.68 hectares per 1,000 population, and New Westminster is currently at 2 (hectares). So, you are very low in relation to the average,” she said. “The only city that you compare favourably to is the City of Vancouver. That's at 1.75.”
In terms of parkland targets for the City of New Westminster, the plan proposes that the city try to retain and not fall behind on its current parkland supply.
“That would be one hectare per 1,000 population, and given that you're getting 25,000 new people, this would mean you would need 25 new hectares of parkland by 2034,” she said. “We're also proposing that for all park types that remain at two hectares per 1,000, which would require 50 hectares, including the active park lands. So, half of it would be active, the other 25 would be those other categories of linear park, natural park, etc.”
According to Berris, about 10 per cent of the city’s land area is currently occupied by parks.
A proximity analysis reviewed the walking distance to parks in New Westminster.
“If you're looking at all types of parks, the city is doing very well,” she said. “Most parts of the city are within a 10-minute walk of some kind of a park.”
When it active-parks only, Berris said there are some residential areas that are beyond a 10-minute walk.
Who is using city parks facilities?
Berris said a human movements analysis – which tracks information from mobile devices – looked at who visits New West facilities.
“There's more inflow of surrounding residents to New Westminster facilities than the reverse,” she said. “So, more people are coming in to use your facilities than are going out to the surrounding municipalities.”
When it comes to Queensborough, the data found that 79 per cent of visits to Queensborough parks are by Queensborough residents and 21 per cent are by residents of the rest of New Westminster. Queensborough residents make nine per cent of the visits to parks in other parts of New West (not Queensborough) while 91 per cent of visits are from mainland residents.
What’s next?
At the March 3 workshop, council members provided staff and consultants with input on a wide range of items being considered for the plan. That input, as well as public feedback, will be factored into the plan.
A staff report said the completed engagement summary – which will incorporate feedback from public engagement and council – will be presented to council this spring and will be shared on the city’s Be Heard project page.
Staff aim to present the final report in June/July and have it considered by city council in the late summer/early fall.
Strategic directions
At the March 3 meeting, council unanimously endorsed a draft list of strategic directions, recommendations, and actions toward a 10-year implementation plan (to 2035), which will be included in the forthcoming updated parks and recreation plan.
A staff report said the strategic directions, which will guide implementation of the plan, were informed by public engagement, council and staff input, data analysis to understand current needs and trends, and consideration of the “unique context and priorities” of New Westminster.
These are the 11 draft strategic directions being considered for the plan:
- Protect existing and acquire additional lands for future parks and open spaces
- Expand, renew, and optimize park amenities
- Expand, renew, and maximize use of indoor recreation facilities
- Provide inclusive and equitable opportunities for all
- Advance truth and reconciliation
- Build resilience and adapt to climate change
- Integrate nature and nature-based solutions
- Strengthen connections to and within the parks and recreation system
- Improve and expand core services
- Collaborate and formalize partnerships
- Plan for financial sustainability
