There will soon be even more things to do at Hastings Park now that a proposed expansion incorporating the former site of Empire Field has been approved.
The plan will increase the size of the park by 50 hectares, and once it’s finished, it will offer outdoor enthusiasts a whole bunch of new options.
Beginning in early 2013, construction will begin, and Empire Field will be given a major facelift.
“That is fundamental to the plan… to really create a multi-purpose space that works really well for a public, urban destination park and works really well for fair time and other special events on the site,” says Dave Hutch with the City of Vancouver.
That multi-purpose space will be equipped with two full-size soccer fields, a warm-up area and a three-lane rubberized track.
In addition, there will be a recreation room for yoga and boot camps, four sand beach volleyball courts and several sports courts for basketball, ball and roller hockey.
“Another couple of synthetic turf fields will be really well received with the field users,” says Hutch. “But there are a lot of people who just like to come to the park on their own time. They are not part of an organized group, but they want things to do and they want places where they can work out and stay fit on their own schedule.”
It’s all part of a master plan – a 20 year vision that will see all 62 hectares of Hastings Park transformed into a more active and greener year-round destination. Triple the amount of park space from what’s there now.
Vancouver’s historic fair, the PNE, will still be going strong with an expanded Playland, surrounded by more trees and greenways to replace the current hard surface.
“When the annual fair leaves and the grounds are cleared, often it just looks like an empty fair ground, and the community and council has asked us to really improve the use of Hastings Park by integrating a lot more park space,” says Hutch.
5.4 kilometers of pedestrian and bike trails will wind its way through the park, including a connection to New Brighton Park and Burrard Inlet.
Historic buildings in desperate need of repair will be renovated and retrofitted.
As for parking, plans are in the works to transition all parking to the northern side of the area.
The first phase of the sports park comes in at a cost of 8 million dollars, with a completion date expected in 2014.
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