Parks

Panorama Ridge has four major parks within its' boundaries or in close proximity. They are Joe Brown, Delta View , Colebrook and Mud Bay Park.

City presents three proposals for development of Joe Brown Park

At an open house held on June 20th at Colebrook United Church, the City presented three options for the future development of Joe Brown Park. Although the options were presented as individual plans, the City supplied a form to participants that allowed them to "mix and match" features from one option with another. Some of the major differences between the options are provided below:

1. Parking. One option left parking where it is now, beside the ball field. The other two options were new parking lots on the park land beside 125A Street. With these new lots, people who wanted to use the park would park in these lots and walk into the park. These options have the advantage of stopping some of the illicite activity now occurring in the park. The downside is the tree and vegetation loss to create these lots, users of the softball and/or soccer fields having to carry their equipment into the park, and a streetscape that would change from the current forest to a parking lot.

2. Filling of the bowl area. The three options varied in to what degree the lower bowl area was filled. In one option (A), very little would be filled, and with both options B and C, a much larger percentage would be filled. It should be noted that how much additional fill is required for a specific option will determine both how long the filling operation will continue and when the area is finally developed into a park. It was estimated by City staff that option A would require seven more years of fill at the current rates of deposition.

3. Softball and Soccer fields. One option retained the current single softball field where the other two both included two softball fields that could also be used as a single soccer field.

4. Mound or Knoll or Flat? One option contained a terraced knoll to be used for walking or viewing. A second option contained a larger "mound" for the same basic purposes, and finally a third option left the area flat.

5. Horse use. One option moved the existing horse riding rinks to an area south of the lower bowl and included an area for a cross country circuit. The other two options did include this facility. All three options included the establishment of equestrian trails that would connect with the GVRD trail below the park.

6. Use of the bowl area. One option showed a bicycle park in the bowl area and the other two used this space as an off-leash dog area. All options showed some form of bicycle park.

7. Trails. All options showed a variety of trails for use by horses, bikes and walkers. All the existing park trails would be retained, although there was some new and upgraded trails to connect to the GVRD line below the park, with 123rd street, and to the park entrance.

Joe Brown Park dumping stopped in basin - May 2006

The City of Surrey has agreed to stop filling in the basin of the area to the west of Joe Brown Park. They will only fill in this area if conditions are so wet that dump trucks cannot access other areas. The City was asked to stop filling this area until a plan for the eventual contours of the Park has been completed. The filling operation threatened to turn the basin into a level plain, and was very close to covering some beautiful evergreen trees.

City agrees to create a plan for Joe Brown Park - April 2006

The City of Surrey has agreed to initiate a planning process to determine the eventual use and final contouring for the area to the west of Joe Brown Park. The WPRRA will be an important partner in this planning process. The WPRRA worked for nearly 15 years to have the area to the west of Joe Brown Park officially dedicated as parkland. It has always been City land, but it was previously under the control of Engineering and has been used by them as a fill dump for at least 20 years. Many developers eyed the area and its' stunning views of Delta as having great development potential. About two years ago, the City declared the area as parkland, but the filling operation continued.

The City saves money by hauling fill to this site versus paying a commercial operation to accept the material. Over the years, tens of thousands of loads have been dumped here, dramatically changing the look of the site. The fill operation forces heavy dump truck to travel through our community, past the school, and through the main part of Joe Brown Park. Over the years, the City has put forward various plans for the Park and indicated that the fill operation will stop. It did not! The WPRRA finally has a commitment from Parks to create a "final" plan for Joe Brown Park and to take this plan to Council for approval. Acceptance of this plan will mean that after filling to the plan is complete, the fill operation will permanently stop.