Vancouver Park Board approves fee increases for 2024

You’ll be paying more for some services and access to facilities run by the Vancouver Park Board next year.

Commissioners approved fee increases at a meeting Tuesday night, as part of the recommendations in the 2024 budget.

“These increases are designed to help maintain affordability for core park and recreation services, while addressing current cost pressures and the need to support a long-term, financially viable approach to fees,” the board explained in a release Wednesday.

The recommended increases range from four to 13 per cent. They will apply to Vancouver-Park-Board-run golf courses, pitch and putt, recreation services, parking, special events and film, the Burrard Marina, and attractions, like the Stanley Park Train, VanDusen Botanical Garden, and the Bloedel Conservatory.

Parking, for example, is recommended to go up by 13 per cent on average, while recreation services is set to increase by an average of six per cent.

The Vancouver Park Board says the changes are expected to generate around $5.44 million of incremental revenue next year.

It notes staff have “reviewed comparative and neighbouring markets” in preparation for the recommended fee increases. It adds they have also “considered the potential effects of new fees on customers, and integrated the projected results into the proposed 2024 Parks and Recreation Operating Budget.”