The Written Word: Rafe Mair Dec. 28th

Thursday, December 28, 2006 03:45 AM

The typhoon blew down 3000 trees in Stanley Park and great consternation has hit the Lower Mainland, hands are wrung, tears flow while the politicians are ordered to “do something”, which usually can be translated into “hit the public for some dough”.

I have a novel idea – knock a few more trees down and open up the park so that people can actually walk through the trees. I elevated that travel balloon on my radio show a few years ago and death threats were among the more temperate of responses I got.

Let’s face a fact here folks – this is not old growth timber we’re talking about here. That was all chopped down by the beginning

of the 20^th century. A great deal stayed chopped as witness Brockton Point and the Aquarium land for another.

Let me tell you of my favourite park in the world – Hampstead Heath in London. This has a neat combination of wooded areas and open land. This distinction between it and Stanley Park is that on Hampstead Heath you don’t need a machete to walk amongst the trees. It’s a place for people, and their dogs and not confined to squirrels and wood bugs.

I love the parks in London. Every time we’re there Wendy and I start from Notting Hill and stroll through Kensington Gardens, down to Hyde park, through there to Green Park finishing with a stroll in St. James’s Park ending up at the Cabinet War Rooms and the Churchill Museum. There are lovely fields, copses of Plane and Oak trees, waters like the Serpentine, nannies with babes, dogs unsuccessfully chasing squirrels – and Londoners – eccentric Londoners.

Before you unsheathe that assassin’s knife let me say that I know Stanley Park is different. I was born in Vancouver for God’s sake and know what the park means to a lot of people. All I say is use this opportunity to open up the woods areas a bit so that people can feel the effect of a woods not just the appearance of it.

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Posted on Thursday, December 28, 2006 03:45 AM in Views by Rafe Mair

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Comments

Posted by: Gofaster on December 28 2006 6:50 AM

I am sure that Sranley Park will be ll nice and neat and prim and proper before 2010....
After all Gordo can't have a black mark on his olympics.

Posted by: Chadermando on December 28 2006 7:25 PM

I think if the city of PG built a Cranbrook Hill Crest city viewscape oriented park and trail system along Cranbrook Hill it would be a nicer park than Stanley Park in 50 years. Rafe and his Vancouver friends would probably be jealous.

I would expand it first from Moores Meadows across Foothills Blvd up to the top of Blue Rock, from there through the canyons to Cranbrook Hill Road and then find a way to tie it into the University and Forest For the World. Open up the trails and make it all accessible. Especially if University Heights gets developed this could be a major iconic urban park IMO.

Unfortunately it doesn't look like that is in the plans just yet�.

Posted by: Palopu on December 28 2006 9:02 PM

It sounds like Rafe can hardly wait for retirement so that he can run off to London and stroll in the parks. **Good bye and good luck Rafe**

Chadermando. Moores Meadows should be renamed **Dog Crap Trails** because thats all you see when you go through there, especially in the Winter. You will have to train dog owners to look after their dogs if you want people (other than dog runners) to use these facilities.