Urban Oasis - Renfrew Ravine Sanctuary Garden

Location

404 - 134 Abbott St

Vancouver, BC

Canada

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Development phase
1999-2005
Budget
$350,000
Site area
3,100 m2 landscape
Plant diversity
3,000 native plants, including 55 species
Volunteers
over 1,000
Certifications & Awards
Project Team
  • Responsible party: Evergreen

Summary

Evergreen's Urban Oasis initiative reclaims lost urban spaces and transforms them into vibrant natural areas. The project has improved and restored plant and animal habitat in seven green spaces in Vancouver and New Westminster, involving local communities in the design, planting, and maintenance of all project sites.

Goals of Urban Oasis include building relationships between diverse people, reconnecting people to the environmental and cultural history of the areas, creating a culture of environmental stewardship, enhancing environmental knowledge, and improving livability of neighbourhoods.

One of the seven sites, the Renfrew Ravine Sanctuary Garden, located between the 29th Avenue SkyTrain station and the Renfrew Park Community Centre, is an effort of over 200 individuals ranging in age from four to 84 years old. Not only have residents, community, and school groups cleaned up the Renfrew Ravine portion of Still Creek (http://seatoskygreenguide.ca/items?q=still+creek&commit=Search), they have created a beautifully cared for and peaceful green space within an extremely urban context.

Elements in the Renfrew Ravine Sanctuary Garden include walking paths, a hand-carved bench, a labyrinth, pebble ground-mosaics, and low maintenance native species plantings for wildlife habitat rejuvenation.

Volunteers have been working for eight years, and continue to clean and maintain the area twice a year.

The seven project locations include:

  • Slocan Park
  • Renfrew Ravine
  • Woodland Park
  • Jericho Sailing Centre
  • Queen's Park
  • Hume Park
  • 10th Avenue/Connaught Heights

"Urban Oasis has given often city bound children of our neighbourhood an opportunity for day to day connection with the non-urban world" (Committee member and area resident).

Tours: Open to the public.

 

This post was imported from the 'Greater Vancouver Green Guide', it's part of the 'Green Guide Portal' to the Green Building Brain.