Vancouver Park Board to uncover underground creek near English Bay
Posted October 4, 2021 11:06 am.
VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) — Vancouverites who walk their dogs in Spanish Banks Beach Park may notice some changes soon as a new project is set to move ahead.
In a process called daylighting, Canyon Creek will be uncovered, creating an aboveground stream.
The Board approved the motion to daylight Canyon Creek in March 2020. (Vancouver Park Board)
Canyon Creek currently runs undergrown. It goes through a pipe under Spanish Banks West Parking Lot A, passes under an area of lawn close by, before being discharged into English Bay.
The work would slice the park in half, and the exposed creek would have to be fenced off.
“The opportunities to daylight streams in Parks are relatively few in the City; this project will bring connectivity within a larger Regional watershed of important conservation value, of high visibility, and promote ecological awareness,” the city staff report reads.
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If successful, the city could see similar daylighting habitat restoration efforts in other busy parks.
“The overall loss is very minimal. In terms of parking capacity we are of course removing some of that asphalt,” Vancouver Park Board Vice Chair Dave Demers said about the 35 fewer spots at Spanish Banks.
Demers says they are looking at the recent success of the Spanish Bank creek, and the salmon that was able to return to that creek to spawn.
Daylighting of Canyon Creek would create an aboveground watercourse to flow into mostly infilled land where Spanish Banks beach currently sits. (Courtesy: Vancouver Park Board)
He says there will be more ecological benefits with the stream. “It’s perfect for a variety of wildlife,” he said, adding, the general public will get a chance to see nature firsthand.
The Vancouver Park Board meeting Monday night will discuss timeline and next steps such as the budget.
