Thanks to the vision and leadership of previous generations, the people of Vancouver today are able to enjoy the many parks along our waterfront. These parks make Vancouver a wonderful city to live in and visit. A hundred years ago, the water was lined with private houses leaving the public with limited access to the water. Over the decades, these houses were acquired by the city and converted to parks. This task was completed years ago along English Bay. Today these parks are on land worth hundreds of millions of dollars.
Along Point Grey, some properties were purchased but the prices started really going up so we essentially gave up. Today, by my quick estimated, the parks lining Point Grey Road would cost around $300 million to acquire. Currently, these parks are rather isolated and difficult to access. Point Grey is not very safe to cycle on nor very pleasant to cycle, walk or run along. Certainly not a pleasant or even safe family outing. There is little free parking so people can’t easily drive there either. The noise of the speeding traffic makes the parks less enjoyable to spend time in. People driving and cycling by would likely get harassed and honked at if they tried to slow down to enjoy the view. Certainly, the we are not able to get fully value of this gift from previous generations with Pt Grey as a commuter route.
Point Grey Cornwall Greenway proposal to divert commuter traffic off Pt Grey making the street much more comfortable to cycle, walk and run along will give far more people access to these parks. People walking and cycling will be able to enjoy the $300 million views from the parks as they pass by or stop to relax, picnic or enjoy a sunset. To get there by transit, people can jump off the bus at Macdonald and Pt Grey.
While the Sun’s headline screams Vancouver’s Point Grey Road set to become a ‘park for the rich’ with new plan restricting traffic, the reality is anyone rich enough to afford a bike, a pair of shoes or a $2.75 bus fare will be able to enjoy the new Point Grey Road. According to a recent survey by the BCCC, almost 80% of people own or have access to a bicycle. Pretty sure nowhere 80% of people in B.C. are rich. For those without a bicycle, there is Vancouver’s new bike sharing system where using the bikes will only cost $5 a day and $95 a year, hardly a fortune. For those who can’t ride a bicycle, separated bike lanes are proving popular with people propelled by power wheelchairs, e-bikes and mobility scooters.
With only 50 or so homes along the Point Grey waterfront, not even most millionaire can buy a piece of the view. With the Point Grey Cornwall Greenway, everyone will be able to enjoy the fantastic $300 million views!
Take Action
So, please encourage the City of Vancouver to build the Point Grey Cornwall Greenway now and speed up the implementation of other badly needed all ages and abilities cycling and walking improvements. Lets realize the health, safety, environmental, social and economic benefits of as soon as possible! Tell them the problems that you have experienced along Point Grey & Cornwall and let them know what the Point Grey Cornwall Greenway would mean to you, your family and community.
- Address City Council on July 23. The meeting starts at 2pm. Email meetingcoordinator@vancouver.ca or call Lori Isfeld, at 604.871.6355, by 1 pm on Monday, July 22, 2013. More info…
- Write Mayor Gregor Robertson and Council <mayorandcouncil@vancouver.ca> in support of the Point Grey Cornwall Greenway.
- Write letters to the editor: https://bikehub.ca/media
More on Point Grey Cornwall
- HUB’s Petition
- Pt Grey Plans Safer for Residents Children Walkers Drivers & Cyclists
- Speed Up Building the Bike Network Starting with Pt Grey Cornwall
- Separated All Ages Bike Lanes Needed on Cornwall
- Point Grey Road – Cornwall Avenue Greenway | City of Vancouver
Richard Campbell 
Margaret Piggot Park is EAST of McDonald.
Jean Beaty and Point Grey “parks” are barely wide enough to throw a baseball.
If the city shuts down PG rd then it should alsi expropriate the land of the wealthy, tear down those houses and create some meaningful sized parks.
Those small parks should be expanded. I hope that the planned Geeenway will let people see the potential for more and larger parks. Then public and private money could be raised to purchase more of the properties.
exactly. Make a seawall in front of their homes all the way to UBC. If they really care about the safety of children, the ecology, the safety of bikers we shouldn’t hear a peep out of any of them. Right.
Pingback: $300 Million Views: Why Point Grey Road needn’t be a road for the rich | Price Tags
The “Parks” are the size of postage stamps!
$20 million dollar postage stamps that is!
Seems like the best views would have been from a seawall that connects the parks and goes in front of the houses.
Well, yes, the views from a path along the waterfront would be better. That will likely cost tens of millions of dollars and take years of public process, design and approvals. It will also generate a lot of debate so it is not certain that it would ever be built.
Meanwhile, the current proposal is much better than what is there now along Pt Grey and people will be able to use it within a few months.
Richard, can you comment on the seawall expansion plan that has been buried, the same one that would accomplish all the stated goals (and was to be subject of a substantial private donation), but “negatively” impact the exclusivity of the Pt. Road homes? It is tough not be skeptical on such developments.
Also, I think it is myopic to focus on the wants of local residents when so many of the city’s working population use this route. I would love a traffic reduced area on my street in Kits, but recognize that it is extremely selfish and that many people depend on my street as a thoroughfare.
A component of a healthy vibrant city is a business base, and this move I fear is very harmful to an already fragile economy.
Jonathan, I’ll probably do a post on the Seawall proposal soon. It would be very expensive, take years to complete and is very controversial. Not just from people who live on the waterfront but others who like the waterfront the way it is.
An option that might be better is to use that and other private and public money to start buying up the properties along the waterfront again. Perhaps starting with the ones next to the current parks to make them larger and connect them.
Might encourage some of the owners to donate them to the city in their wills or for a tax deduction. As this likely not have as much opposition, it would likely be easier to raise private and public money for.
Also, the shoreline could be restored to a more natural state. It has been really altered over the years with fill and structures.
One idea floated by yours truly a couple of years ago on the Bula Blog was to build a pier for pedestrians and cyclists 15-30 metres out into the water parallel to the beach.
It would preserve the natural qualities of the beach and cost a lot less than a seawall with hundreds of tonnes of imported materials obliterating the gravel and stone ans tide pools.
Yes, that is a possibly. It would cost tens of millions and could take decades to design, get approvals, fund and build. Worth looking at though.
we can enjoy these parks without the changes to PGR, your post makes no sense.
I mostly don’t want this to go through because of your constant ramblings on every news article out there regarding this matter.
Well, apologies if my post is not clear enough. Sure people can get to the small parks but I expect that only the people living nearby do now.
With the improvements, it is obvious that getting to the parks by biking and walking will be much more enjoyable and there will be thousands more people per day cycling and walking along Pt Grey. So more people from all over the city are likely to stop and enjoy the parks or at least enjoy the views passing by
Without the traffic noise, the parks will be also much nicer to spend time in.
Richard, we understand your enthusiasm but your blinders are on and just aren’t coming off. Taking away a main artery that’s been there for decades makes NO sense. At any given time there’s 10-15,000 employees at UBC and up to 40,000 students in a year.
Many come from all over the GVRD and many come along Pt. Grey Rd. The buses cannot get many workers to UBC for 7:00 am or to the hospital to work (hundreds more employees).
4th Avenue is congested, Broadway even more so. Parts of Broadway are so dangerous and narrow I avoid them on a quiet day.
Put the bikers on York or 1st, 2nd, 3rd and take them off Pt. Grey Rd. For many months of the year there is NO justification for bike lanes at all. Regardless of your enthusiasm it just does not bring the bbikes out in the winter or on any given day that’s cold and wet.
The busiest time of year for the roads and buses is the first week of school in September. The weather at this time of year is perfect for cycling.
As well, the road capacity to UBC is limited by the lanes of traffic west of Alma. As Pt Grey does not extend west of Alma, diverting traffic off Point Grey will have little impact on commuters to UBC.
Pingback: Seaside Greenway Along Point Grey Road Going Ahead | Richard Campbell