The city has wrapped up its annual brush clearing at a number of parks to make them safer.
In 2014, Delta police and the Delta parks department conducted a safety audit for parks, including interfaces between recreation facilities and parks.
The audit, using Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design principles, focused on lighting, vegetation and camera placements at facilities and parks.
As a result of that audit, council approved funding for an annual brush clearing program that focuses on sightlines and vegetation removal, clearing brush in urban forests and trails and raising tree canopies to a six-foot minimum height to improve visibility.
This year projects at the following sites were completed: 5798 Ferry Road, 89A Avenue Park, Arbor Place Reserve, Beach Grove Park, Boundary Bay Beach Reserve, Cory Drive Park, Delview Park, Dugald Morrison Park, Ernie Burnett Park, Forest by the Bay Park Reserve, Georgia Street Park Reserve, 81A Avenue Park, Annieville Lions Park Association Park, Belgrave Avenue Park Reserve, Chalmers Park, Delta Nature Reserve, Diefenbaker Park, Endersby Park, Firehall Park Reserve, Fred Gingell Park, Grauer Park, Gunderson Park, Highland Park, Kensington Park, Ladner Harbour Park, Linear Park, Mader Meadows Park Reserve, Millennium Trail, North 40 Park Reserve, North Delta Community Park, Pebble Hill Park, Scott 72 Park Reserve, Sunbury Park, Sunshine Hills Park, Wade Road Park, Westview Park, Hellings Park, Holly Park, Ladner Community Centre, Ladner Leisure Centre, Mackie Park, McKitrick Park, Mountain View Park, North Delta Cemetery, Patrick Island Foreshore Reserve, Purfleet Point Park Reserve, South Delta Recreation Centre, Sungod Recreation Centre, Sunstone Park, Watershed Park and Winskill Park.
Parks director Ken Kuntz noted that in addition to the safety audit, the city continues to receive requests from residents with shared fence lines asking for removal of invasive species.
To address the public demand for invasive species removal, an amendment to the program scope will be brought forward for consideration in the 2021 financial plan process.
