Vancouver’s Strathcona Park, site of former homeless camp, reopens to the public

The Park Board began tearing down the fences surrounding the east side of Strathcona Park on Tuesday.

Article content

The Vancouver park board began tearing down the fences surrounding the east side of Strathcona Park on Tuesday.

Article content

East Vancouver park is reopened to the public after more than five months of cleanup and remediation following the removal of Canada’s largest homeless camp on April 30.

“We know this park is an integral part of the community and we are pleased that once again this is a space to socialize and connect with one another,” says Donnie Rosa, general manager of the park board. “We also know that a lot has happened here, so we have worked closely with indigenous and community partners to ensure we provide the additional care needed to treat the land.”

Hundreds of people living in tents and other makeshift structures called the park home for nearly a year. The homeless population, which peaked at 300 last fall, had moved to Strathcona Park in June 2020 after being previously evicted from camps at CRAB Park and Oppenheimer Park.

Article content

After an agreement to clean up the park was reached between the provincial government, the city of Vancouver, and the Vancouver park board, displaced residents of Strathcona were offered social housing space in other parts of the city.

The park board says the reopening of the park is expected to take up to five days to complete, but the park will be accessible for public use while works are underway.

Remediation work at Strathcona Park included the removal and replacement of grass and gravel surface areas, and the replanting of trees.

The park board says the park’s all-weather sports field will also reopen soon, but the grass sports fields will remain closed to allow the new grass to take root.

More to come …