Kitsilano Beach bike path put on hold pending court ruling

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      A bike path planned for Hadden and Kitsilano beach parks has been put on hold until a court ruling is reached on legal action challenging the proposed route.

      According to Robert Kasting, a lawyer representing historian Megan Carvell Davis, City of Vancouver lawyers agreed to a B.C. Supreme Court injunction halting any construction on the path until a hearing is held on the lawsuit.

      Kasting told reporters at a news conference in Hadden Park today (November 8) that Harvey Hadden bought the land in 1928 and gave it to the city “with the very specific trust that it be kept in its natural state”.

      He added that Davis felt the plan to add a bike path through the park was “a violation of that trust agreement the city entered into when they were donated [the] property”.

      Park board commissioner Constance Barnes said the city is pausing further work on the bike path until the issue is heard in B.C. Supreme Court.

      “What happens here now is we put the pause button on until we go before the courts and see what the courts decide,” Barnes told the Straight by phone.

      Barnes added that the proposed route of the separated bike path through Hadden and Kitsilano beach parks was not “written in stone”.

      “There seems to be quite a misconception that we’ve already decided on the path, and that’s not the case," she said.

      In response to public opposition to the path, the park board announced last month it would be establishing an advisory group on the final design of the route.

      Barnes said the aim of the new route is to improve safety for people using the existing paths through the beach parks.

      “I see the seniors down there with their walkers and the bikes kind of trying to dodge in and around them and kids,” she said.

      Howard Kelsey, an opponent of the proposed bike path, told reporters that the topic “is not a bike lane issue”.

      “This is a common sense issue,” he said. 

      Comments

      20 Comments

      Kiskatinawkid

      Nov 8, 2013 at 6:17pm

      More whining from the 'kits point' crew. Get a life.

      Blurred Vision?

      Nov 8, 2013 at 8:41pm

      Constance Barnes notes: "“There seems to be quite a misconception that we’ve already decided on the path, and that’s not the case,"

      Ah, well, the average Vancouver voter IS pretty stupid. So it's not suprising they would be mistaken.

      I don't know how the public could possibly have reached such a conclusion... could it be based on the stubborn and aggressive, but very clear, comments of your colleague, Aaron Jasper?

      "To be clear,” said Jasper, “this decision will not be reversed."

      "Jasper said the park board consulted with both the city’s persons with disabilities and seniors advisory committees prior to mapping out the bike route."

      http://www.vancourier.com/news/kits-beach-bike-path-a-done-deal-1.660202

      Alan Layton

      Nov 8, 2013 at 8:46pm

      Awesome! Good for them. Too often the bike lobby has bullied the city and gotten their way without considering others and it's good to see Vision backing down, at least for the time being. It's a park for crying out loud and why do we need bikes whizzing through it? Can't people be allowed to relax without worrying about being run over by some aggressive, entitled jerk on a $2,000 bike going way over the speed limit?

      I know that there's going to be negative comments about this, but it's mainly due to the fact that it's a west side park. If this were in East Van there would be huge protests complete with shrill proclamations about Fascism, Hitler and genocide.

      Rob Norco

      Nov 8, 2013 at 9:20pm

      Sure, give the cyclists another bike path. They'll still ride on sidewalks, in crosswalks, through stop lights and signs and without helmets or regard for pedestrians and motorists. Sometimes I wish our mayor had a drinking problem and did crack.

      Old Fogeys Be Gone

      Nov 8, 2013 at 10:09pm

      I mean like, yeah. These anti-bike, richy-rich types, like whadda they want anyway?

      So, what if Vision Vancouver (oh boy, I really like that Mayor guy, Gregory, who) wants to impose (like a manly man) a 12-foot-wide blacktop freeway through the grassy park space adjacent to the foreshore. Me, I'm a cyclist, and those richy rich folks can stick it where the sun don't shine - if I want to careen right through Hadden and Kits Beach parks at 50km an hour -- well, faster, actually -- and right next to the beach (for that great view, don'tcha know), don't I deserve that view, don't I deserve to ride just as fast as I want to? Well, don't I? I mean, I paid a small fortune for all the lycra I wear, and my bike costs almost a month's wages. I'll ride where I damn well please.

      And as for those kids who're playing in the Kits playground - I bet they're the kids of those richy, rich folks - let 'em go play on their parent's yachts, and let us cycling folks catapult through Hadden and Kits Beach parks - I just love the wind in my face, sometimes I just close my eyes when I'm on my bike and just feel that wind. Y'know, as far as I'm concerned there's just too much grass, anyway. Ya gotta cut the stuff - that takes park staff to do that, and it costs a bundle. Blacktop all over our parks I say.

      Yeah @Kiskatinawkid, you're right. Me, I'm sick and tired of these richy, rich folks telling us what to do. Pave the whole darn thing, I say -- that'll show 'em.

      Mayor Moonbeam

      Nov 8, 2013 at 11:20pm

      To the two idiot pro-tricycle bloggers;

      I can tell you that the people present today and all through this ridiculous process are from many levels of wealth. Most whom attend are 'blue-collar' citizens like myself that have used this park for 35yrs and don't use where they live as a prop against this cause.
      The fact is that Clown Jespar thinks he's heading to the Big Chair at City Hall when in fact he be back on the tour bus circuit next December. As for Twinkle Toes Blythe, she too will be gone probably back to some Commercial Drive studio designing some Disney Fanasty Movie.
      So many of the realistic citizens of Vancouver cannot wait till the better party returns next Fall and orders the removal of all the bike lanes that this Visionless council 'stuffed' down our throats over the past 7 yrs...!
      I am not against bike lanes but really we don't have a great need for them in this city, period.
      When you too pro-bikers start paying into the city of vancouver like I do, then come post on here otherwise go tell someone who cares.

      ACMESalesRep

      Nov 8, 2013 at 11:55pm

      “Harvey Hadden bought the land in 1928 and gave it to the city ‘with the very specific trust that it be kept in its natural state’.”

      Surely if these people were truly interested in preserving Hadden's legacy they'd demand that the park be closed entirely and returned to its original splendour with no seawall, no washrooms, no walking paths, no dog park, and no unnatural additions of any kind. If not, one can only conclude that they're playing politics in an attempt to deny others the same pleasures they apparently derive from the park.

      AlanPage

      Nov 9, 2013 at 12:50am

      So sad that the only way Vision Vancouver listens to its citizens is through Supreme Court! When do people of Vancouver wake up and realize how their city councilors are wasting their tax money on pet projects and extremists special interest agenda? with absolute no consideration of Vancouver residents?

      Oh I am sorry, they do care about some Vancouver residents, as long as they are part of Concord, Onni, Bosa, Trump or other developer POLITICAL FUNDING friends!

      Great small victory, but I BET the City Hall is just planning a sneaky way to still do this, maneuvering around the law!

      BikerCK

      Nov 9, 2013 at 8:41am

      Hard not to see this court case as a waste of tax dollars that all Canadians pay for, instead of handling the issue at the local taxpayer level, but what's done is done. Now I would like some clarity about what the SaveKitBeach protestors consider a natural state. Are they asking for a return to the 1920s for this space I terms of public amenities? One suspects they will be choosing the arbitrary time period that best suits their agenda. Which wouldn't be the year it was originally deeded, since it's likely there were more people on bikes going to the park than in cars in 1929

      No Longer a Vision Supporter

      Nov 9, 2013 at 9:09am

      Oh Commissioner Barnes, blames everyone but herself when things go wrong. Lack of consultation: it's because the "seniors" who live in Kitsilano "have no internet. Anger aver the bike path: the public misconception over the degree of "done dealness" even when you and your colleagues are saying "no changes, consultation was great, it's going to be finished by May."

      Could it instead be time for a gold old fashion, honest apology?

      Ok, off to squeeze my big fat behind into some yoga pants.