The Vancouver Park Board has revised timelines around post 4/20 rally repairs, suggesting the park and fields adjacent to Sunset Beach will now open in early June rather than a month later.
The news comes two days after photos on the park board’s Twitter account painted a much longer timeline, suggesting the fields would be closed until at least Canada Day.
The tweet was posted just before noon on Saturday, less than 12 hours after the event was over. The revised schedule issued Monday came after parks staff reassessed the area earlier in the day.
Last year’s 4/20 event prompted a 10-week closure of the nearby field.
“Park operations staff did a preliminary inspection in the immediate aftermath of the event and fenced the field to protect the damaged field from public use over the weekend,” the board said in a news release. “Park board and city staff worked together all night after 4/20 to clean event debris on the field, but there were still objects such as glass and discarded edibles on the field that posed a danger to the public.”
Fencing has since been installed around the field behind the beach itself.
The field rehab is expected to take somewhere between 30 and 45 days and requires a number of steps. Drying, cleaning and aerating the field happens first, followed by the application of top dressing — typically sand or clay — followed by seeding and germination.
All weight or pressure has to be kept off the grass throughout the process, according to the board’s news release.
“The Park Board understands that Sunset Beach Park is a much loved community asset, and provides vital recreation space for the dense downtown core,” the news release says. “We regret any closure, but must take steps to ensure the long-term viability of this field which also experienced major impacts in 2017 during the same event.”
The Park Board will bill all costs associated with the field restoration and other related expenses to the rally organizers, known as the Vancouver 4/20 Event Society.
Last year’s bill rang in at almost $67,000 and those figures covered staffing costs, facility closures and field repairs, among others. Society founder and rally co-organizer Dana Larsen ended up paying about $7,000 to cover damage done to the grassy areas surrounding the beach.
He told the Courier late Monday afternoon that his group will again cover those costs this year, on top of any lost revenue from the closure of the nearby Vancouver Aquatic Centre and Sunset Concession.
More to come.
@JohnKurucz
