An online petition launched over the weekend is calling on Vancouver Park Board to declare a pair of local parks as pedestrian-only zones.
The petition, which was launched March 31 and as of Tuesday afternoon had 65 signatures, is asking the park board to make Kits Beach and Hadden parks off limits to cyclists.
“Clearly, these are pedestrian areas,” the change.org petition reads. “Having cyclists zig-zag or race [through] foot traffic is already dangerous and disruptive to the vast majority of park patrons. We don’t want more disruption.”
The board is considering a separated bike path through the Kits Beach area. A propose route with various options was presented to commissioners at a meeting last month, however commissioners referred the issue back to staff asking for a more detailed plan.
The proposed route that was presented to commissioners March 12 would start to the west at Balsam Street and Cornwall Avenue and run northeast to Ogden Avenue and Maple Street, running through green space in the western and northern ends, and would mean the loss of more than 900 square meters of green space.
Residents opposed to the plan rallied ahead of last month’s meeting and packed the park board office as commissioners heard the report from staff.
This isn’t the first time residents have protested a paved bike lane in the area. In 2013, residents rallied against a similar proposal.
The pathway is part of the city’s Point Grey-Cornwall Active Transportation Corridor, which runs between Kits Beach and Jericho Park. City council approved the corridor in July 2013 and asked the park board to “proceed with upgrading of the Seaside Greenway in Kitsilano Beach and Hadden Parks as a priority project funded by the City’s capital budget.”
Later that year, park board commissioners approved several cycling and pedestrian alignment and infrastructure improvements affecting a number of parks. Most of the work has now been completed, with the exception of Kits Beach and Hadden parks.
The petition states that cyclists already access both parks along Ogden, Arbutus and Cornwall.
“The new lanes are unnecessary overkill. To protect these parks, for the benefit of the broadest spectrum of visitors, we want Kits Beach and Hadden parks to be a pedestrian-only zone.”
