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| Stanley Park's Next 100 Years |
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Stewardship What will Stanley Park look like in 2089, on the 200th anniversary of its formal dedication by Lord Stanley, Governor General of Canada? What will people have to say then about our stewardship of this special landscape? In October 1889 Lord Stanley stood on the bluff at Chaytoos, a Coast Salish word meaning high bank, on the south shore of Burrard Inlet. It was here that Lord Stanley dedicated the land; "To the use and enjoyment of people of all colours, creeds and customs for all time". Even before Stanley Park came into existance its cultural and natural landscapes were changing. Native settlements ceased to be or were removed as were the 'squattors' who'd settled along the shore of Coal Harbour. The forests of the peninsula were logged in the late 1860's and with park development came access roads and trails, and facilities for public recreation. For over 100 years Stanley Park has been the City of Vancouver's premier natural playground and something more; almost never described in words, but felt and voiced by the citizens of the city across the generations in letters, referendums, and public protest made in response to arrising issues of park stewardship. Coming to Grips with Questions of Stewardship What guiding vision do we have? What did we inherit from the actions of Vancouver's first City Council when it petitioned the Federal Government to lease 1,000 acres of the Burrard Peninsula for parkland and what mechanisms for its proper management? What legacy did Lord Stanley leave with his inspiring speech in 1889? What questions were left unanswered or not imagined at all? As a naturalist who has spent many hours in Stanley Park, I find myself guided by a few basic questions on my search to understand this fragile landscape. What has changed, what will change, and why? Perhaps answers to these questions can be found in Stanley Park's history - a special history sifted from clues gathered by a new field of science called historical ecology? Isn't it time we found out just how well we're doing? What's been altered, degraded, or lost in the first 100 years? What's likely to happen in Stanley Park's second century (1989-2089)? What can or should be conserved or preserved? What are we through our elected Park Board doing about these changes? To answer these questions we must have both:an understanding of stewardship and the process and resources necessary for appropriate planning, programs and management practices in Stanley Park. Governance Public Input Evaluation Monitoring Interpretation What Progress Has Been Made? What's Really Going On?
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