All New Fisherman’s Wharf Park

Photo by C. Gittens

After a hectic summer of hard work by city parks staff, the new and improved Fisherman's Wharf park is ready for public enjoyment. Grassy hills to sit on or roll down, a rain garden, a boardwalk, a sinuously curving rock wall delineating the original harbourfront, and berry-producing native shrubs now grace what was once a flat, boring field. Residents have been eagerly awaiting the changes and are impressed with what they see. "It's amazing. We live in such a beautiful place," enthused Stirling Chow, who lives a few blocks from the park. Other residents, who have been enjoying the new children's play area for more than a year, are equally happy to see the work completed and say that the play area, although small, is still one of the best in town, with a great mix of equipment for kids of all ages.

Photo by Marg Gardiner

There will be a community celebration for the park on October 2, from 11 am to noon. There will be a ceremonial planting to mark the occasion and refreshments will be served. Everyone is welcome, and encouraged to stay and enjoy the park afterwards.

Photo by Marg Gardiner

In consultation with the community, City staff developed a management plan for Fisherman's Wharf Park in 2009 to transform an underused sports field into a natural park with more amenities. The new rain garden represents a stream that once existed there, and is the largest in Victoria, intercepting two storm drains that currently collect runoff from 14,250 square meters of hard and paved surfaces in the James Bay neighbourhood.

Rain gardens look great and are an environmentally friendly way to manage storm water.