Question 8

Question 8. What, if anything, do you think the Park Board should do to support/facilitate community activation and stewardship of park spaces and facilities?

Stephen MENON (200) - Lower the barriers. Simpler, cheaper permits for small events, performances and neighbourhood gatherings, and practical help with insurance for small groups.

Create more small spaces for music and performance in parks, as our platform proposes.

Fund stewardship properly. Dedicated funding and staff support for volunteer groups doing restoration, gardening and cleanup, so volunteers are not left to cover gaps the City should fill.

Share the data. Publish tree, stump and maintenance data openly so residents can report problems, track progress and hold the Board to account. Residents are already mapping this themselves.

Respond. A 10 day response standard for community inquiries and hazard reports, so people who step up get an answer.

Leonard VANDERSTAR (202) – Being receptive and responsive to City citizens is key here, hence why VIPP will convene monthly town halls as just one example. Engagement in turns results in more participation and thus more hands on deck to ensure park stewardship. It is a collective effort and the Park Board can not do this alone and requires the social/political capital to achieve its mandate and goals.

Tamiko SUZUKI (206) – When people feel connected to a park or public space, they are more likely to care for it and take an active role in its stewardship. The Park Board can encourage this involvement by making it easier for neighbourhood groups and small community organizations to participate. This could include offering small grants, simplifying permits and applications, and providing staff expertise, practical guidance, and ongoing support.

There are many ways to activate our public green spaces, including expanding community gardens, creating pollinator gardens with native plants, organizing invasive plant removal, and supporting community-led restoration and educational activities. The key is to make participation accessible rather than burying volunteers in bureaucracy and time-consuming applications. By supporting local initiatives and giving communities the tools to care for their own neighbourhood spaces, the Park Board can strengthen community connections, increase biodiversity, and foster a shared sense of responsibility for our public commons.

Summit AMBEAULT-WANNAMAKER (210) – The Vancouver park board should allow easier permitting for small events, performances, gatherings, and dedicated assistance with allowing such events to take place; while also having spaces for music and performance.

On top of this, we need dedicated funding for projects, community groups, and staff, who are actively working for effective stewardship.

Shayla BIRD (211) – We need to make it easier for communities to bring our public spaces to life.

As an event planner, educator and community organizer, I know how much work can go into navigating permits, insurance, costs and multiple levels of bureaucracy just to create something positive for a community.

I want the Park Board to simplify that process. That means clearer permitting, predictable timelines, affordable access to facilities, small community activation grants and staff who can help community organizations navigate the system.

This also connects directly to the Vancouver Liberals’ commitment to “Bring Back Fun” by making it more affordable for festivals and community events to operate in Vancouver.

Cam ROTHERY (213) – Again, we fervently believe in bottom-up governance. Convening monthly town halls to meaningfully engage with citizens and their concerns is one of the best ways the Parks Board can stay closely connected and aligned with the citizenry of Vancouver.

Tyler PETERSEN (214) – Expansion of community gardens in park spaces is a great move, as well as increasing our pollinator gardens and meadows. Communities are interested in participating and stewarding these spaces, they just need to be empowered to do so. The South Memorial Park pollinator garden is an excellent example of this, as are the community gardens in park spaces that we see across this city.

As mentioned above, OneCity has a plan to ReWild Vancouver, in planting more indigenous species, building on the important work of organizations like Free the Fern, who promote better education and in re-instating some of the ecological diversity that has been lost to the proliferation of invasive species.

Sacia BURTON (215) – Groups across Vancouver are already leading the way on community activation and stewardship – it is Park Board’s responsibility to support, not impede, community work. Stewardship groups, such as Free the Fern and the Everett Crowley Park Committee, have limited access to municipal funding for their work, despite their demonstrated positive ecological and social impacts. Given their efforts begin where Park Board capacity ends, stewardship groups should have access to a dedicated granting stream through local government that strengthens and supports their work.

Community activation, such as the installation of public art and events in plazas and parks, breathe life into the city. It is worth exploring the ways that Park Board can limit red tape for groups hosting events in public or intervening in the built environment for improved use of public space.

Breanne SMART (216) – Simplify and accelerate the permitting process for community events, taking into consideration the use of space. Ex. utilization of a large green area for an evening in the summer should have little to no barrier to be able to run.

Proactively reach out to community groups that often go unnoticed or lack the funding for large events to ensure that they have support with running events, using park space, and reaching a broader community.

Pilot new and exciting programs that solve problems or invite people into spaces that they would otherwise not have accessed. Community gardens and food forests are great examples of this.

John IRWIN (217) – I have been a long-time supporter of community gardens and, recently, of urban food forests and indigenous plantings. I have met many times, at many different events with groups like the Stanley Park Ecology Society and the Environmental Youth Alliance to help to foster their roles in park stewardship.

Amanda BAINS (221) – The Park Board should make it easier and less expensive for residents, neighbourhood organizations, cultural groups and local artists to bring public spaces to life.

I support simplifying permits, publishing clear service standards, offering small activation grants and creating a single point of contact for community organizers. We should reduce unnecessary costs that prevent neighbourhood festivals and cultural events from proceeding, while maintaining reasonable safety and accessibility requirements.

The Board can also expand adopt-a-park programs, community gardens, volunteer restoration projects and partnerships with community-centre associations. Stewardship programs must include proper training and support—they should complement unionized frontline workers, not replace them.

Public spaces are cared for best when residents feel that they belong there and have a meaningful role in shaping them.

Tom DIGBY (222) – Park activation is an essential service. These events weave our city together – all cultures, economic groups and tourists. Park Board has a wonderful team in our Arts, Reconciliation and Culture department. We need to continue funding and find ways to enhance and support this department.

Michael Robert CADITZ (226) – We will institute bottom-up governance. We will convene monthly town halls to meaningfully engage with citizens and their concerns.

Tricia BARKER (229) – I would have to see a proposal on this. What ideas and options are out there?

Dominic DENOFRIO (230) – As an elected Park Board commissioner, I would support the expansion of community garden projects and pollinator meadows. I would also like to streamline the process for community groups and organizations to host events within our park spaces.

Niknaz ALEMI (231) – Absolutely. I think people are much more connected to public spaces when they have opportunities to actually participate in shaping and caring for them. The Park Board should make community activation and stewardship easier, not more complicated. That could mean supporting neighbourhood groups with small grants, equipment and staff expertise, making permits and processes easier to navigate, and creating more opportunities for community led programming, arts, environmental education, gardening and ecological restoration. I am especially interested in stewardship as a way to connect people with nature. Community members can be valuable partners in things like native planting, pollinator gardens, habitat restoration, invasive species management and citizen science. These programs can support biodiversity while also building environmental knowledge and stronger connections between people and their neighbourhoods.

Again, we already have a foundation to build on. VanPlay specifically calls for stronger community stewardship, and the 2023–2026 Capital Plan recognizes stewardship as an opportunity for community building and participation. Programs like the Neighbourhood Matching Fund also show that relatively small investments can help communities bring their own ideas into public spaces. I would like to see the Park Board expand these opportunities and make them more accessible across neighbourhoods, while still making sure that stewardship complements, rather than replaces, the Park Board’s responsibility to properly fund and maintain our public spaces.

Wah GEE (233) – The Park Board should make it easier for people to help care for their parks and organize community activities.

Through coaching and supporting school activities, I value the time and energy people give to their communities. I would support simpler permits, a staff member residents can contact, and practical help for community gardens, cleanups and neighbourhood events.

I also support TEAM’s commitment to working with community centre associations.

Volunteers need support, and their efforts should add to properly funded public services. We should make room for people to contribute in different ways, whether they have a few hours occasionally or can take on a regular role.