Central Park is a urban park in

Burnaby Burnaby is a city in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia, Canada. Located in the centre of the Burrard Peninsula, it neighbours the City of Vancouver to the west, the District of North Vancouver across the confluence of the Burrard In ...

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

, founded in 1891. The park is on the

Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

–

border, just west of the

Metropolis at Metrotown Metropolis at Metrotown (commonly referred to as Metrotown) is a three-storey shopping mall complex in the Metrotown area of Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada. Opened in 1986, it is the largest mall in British Columbia and the third-largest ...

shopping complex, and is bounded by Boundary Road on the west, Kingsway on the north, Patterson and Willingdon Avenues on the east, and Imperial Road on the south. The nearest SkyTrain station, Patterson station, named for Burnaby pioneer Dugald Campbell Patterson, is at the park's northeast corner. The main entrance to Central Park is off Kingsway near Patterson Avenue. Central Park was once a naval reserve set aside as a source of masts and spars for ships of the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...

. The park was named to honour Mrs. Sarah (Christine) Oppenheimer, the wife of Vancouver's second mayor, who was born in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. Central Park's primary attraction is the large proportion of its land reserved as a well-preserved temperate rainforest ecosystem, with numerous walking trails. Among its other attractions are the award-winning children's playground, pitch and putt golf, an outdoor swimming facility, a lawn bowling facility, several picnic areas, tennis courts, and a couple of small duck ponds. Wildlife in the park includes

grey squirrels Gray squirrel or grey squirrel may refer to several species of squirrel indigenous to North America: *The eastern gray squirrel (''Sciurus carolinensis''), from the eastern United States and southeastern Canada; introduced into the United Kingdom, ...

and

coyote The coyote (''Canis latrans''), also known as the American jackal, prairie wolf, or brush wolf, is a species of canis, canine native to North America. It is smaller than its close relative, the Wolf, gray wolf, and slightly smaller than the c ...

s. A fitness circuit was installed during the time period between 2012 and 2014 in the park replacing the old wooden exercise apparatus to metal and rubber ones. These apparatus are situated throughout the park and include an exercise bike, pull-up bars, and weights. The 12 stations are designed to improve strength, cardiovascular health, balance, and flexibility. A total of of rubber was used in the manufacturing of the apparatus. The creation of the circuit was sponsored by Tire Stewardship BC and Kal Tire. The Korean War Memorial is in the west side of the park, close to Boundary Road.

Swangard Stadium Swangard Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium in Central Park (Burnaby), Central Park in Burnaby, British Columbia. Primarily used for association football, soccer, rugby, Canadian Football, football, and sport of athletics, athletics, the stadiu ...

, the former home for the

Vancouver Whitecaps Vancouver Whitecaps Football Club is a Canadian professional soccer club based in Vancouver. The Whitecaps compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference. The MLS iteration of the club was established on March 18, ...

soccer team, is located at the northwest corner of Central Park.

Attractions

Trails and hiking

The

Terry Fox Terrance Stanley Fox (July 28, 1958June 28, 1981) was a Canadian athlete, humanitarian, and cancer research activist. In 1980, having had one leg amputated due to cancer, he embarked on a cross-Canada run to raise money and awareness for can ...

Trail circles around the upper pond and just reaches the lower pond. Visitors often use this trail for physical activity purposes and it is annually used for the Terry Fox Run for the City of Burnaby. The Trail of Hope also circles around the upper pond and reaches the lower pond while a 1.9 kilometer trail circles a portion of the parkland.

Swangard stadium

Swangard Stadium, former home of the

, and erected in 1961, is located at the north-west corner of the park. It regularly holds

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...

and

rugby Rugby may refer to: Sport * Rugby football in many forms: ** Rugby union: 15 players per side *** American flag rugby *** Beach rugby *** Mini rugby *** Rugby sevens, 7 players per side *** Rugby tens, 10 players per side *** Snow rugby *** Tou ...

games, alternative sporting events,

concerts A concert, often known informally as a gig or show, is a live performance of music in front of an audience. The performance may be carried by a single musician, in which case it is sometimes called a recital, or by a musical ensemble such as an ...

, and a variety of community events. The stadium is available for rental.

Facilities

There is an outdoor pool on the west side of the park, slated to be converted for indoor use in 2023. The fitness circuit, tennis courts, and golf course are located on the southeast side, while the baseball diamond, lawn bowling facility, and horseshoe pitch sit on the northeast side. The Earl and Jennie Lohn Perennial Garden, as well as the Variety Park playground, are also located on the northeast side of the park.

Ecology

Central Park's large wooded areas are

temperate rainforest Temperate rainforests are rainforests with coniferous or Broad-leaved tree, broadleaf forests that occur in the temperate zone and receive heavy rain. Temperate rainforests occur in oceanic moist regions around the world: the Pacific temperate ...

, a remnant of Vancouver's original forest

ecosystem An ecosystem (or ecological system) is a system formed by Organism, organisms in interaction with their Biophysical environment, environment. The Biotic material, biotic and abiotic components are linked together through nutrient cycles and en ...

. The park was logged in the 1890s, and huge stumps can still be seen. Notches in these stumps mark them as harvested by springboard

logging Logging is the process of cutting, processing, and moving trees to a location for transport. It may include skidder, skidding, on-site processing, and loading of trees or trunk (botany), logs onto logging truck, trucksSeedling A seedling is a young sporophyte developing out of a plant embryo from a seed. Seedling development starts with germination of the seed. A typical young seedling consists of three main parts: the radicle (embryonic root), the hypocotyl (embry ...

s can be seen growing from these

stumps In cricket, the stumps are the three vertical posts that support the bails and form the wicket. '' Stumping'' or ''being stumped'' is a method of dismissing a batsman. The umpire ''calling stumps'' means the play is over for the day. Part of ...

. As these stumps

decay Decay may refer to: Science and technology * Bit decay, in computing * Decay time (fall time), in electronics * Distance decay, in geography * Software decay, in computing Biology * Decomposition of organic matter * Mitochondrial decay, in g ...

they provide

habitat In ecology, habitat refers to the array of resources, biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species' habitat can be seen as the physical manifestation of its ...

and

nutrients A nutrient is a substance used by an organism to survive, grow and reproduce. The requirement for dietary nutrient intake applies to animals, plants, fungi and protists. Nutrients can be incorporated into cells for metabolic purposes or excret ...

for the young plants, while protecting them from the acidic conditions on the

forest floor The forest floor, also called detritus or wikt:duff#Noun 2, duff, is the part of a forest ecosystem that mediates between the living, aboveground portion of the forest and the mineral soil, principally composed of dead and decaying plant matter ...

. The park has two man-made lakes and a stream, which are home to many

phytoplankton Phytoplankton () are the autotrophic (self-feeding) components of the plankton community and a key part of ocean and freshwater Aquatic ecosystem, ecosystems. The name comes from the Greek language, Greek words (), meaning 'plant', and (), mea ...

and

zooplankton Zooplankton are the heterotrophic component of the planktonic community (the " zoo-" prefix comes from ), having to consume other organisms to thrive. Plankton are aquatic organisms that are unable to swim effectively against currents. Consequent ...

species, including ''

Daphnia ''Daphnia'' is a genus of small planktonic crustaceans, in length. ''Daphnia'' are members of the Order (biology), order Anomopoda, and are one of the several small aquatic crustaceans commonly called water fleas because their Saltation (gait), ...

'' and ''

Cyclops In Greek mythology and later Roman mythology, the Cyclopes ( ; , ''Kýklōpes'', "Circle-eyes" or "Round-eyes"; singular Cyclops ; , ''Kýklōps'') are giant one-eyed creatures. Three groups of Cyclopes can be distinguished. In Hesiod's ''Th ...

'' species.

Animal life

A variety of birds live in the park, attracted by the habitat and berry-producing shrubs. These include downy woodpeckers, towhees,

American robins The American robin (''Turdus migratorius'') is a Bird migration, migratory bird of the true thrush genus and Turdidae, the wider Thrush (bird), thrush family. It is named after the European robin because of its reddish-orange breast, though t ...

sparrows Sparrow may refer to: Birds * Old World sparrows, family Passeridae ** House sparrow, or ''Passer domesticus'' * New World sparrows, family Passerellidae * two species in the Passerine family Estrildidae: ** Java sparrow ** Timor sparrow * Hed ...

finches The true finches are small to medium-sized passerine birds in the family Fringillidae. Finches generally have stout conical bills adapted for eating seeds and nuts and often have colourful plumage. They occupy a great range of habitats where the ...

and

crows The Common Remotely Operated Weapon Station (CROWS) is a series of remote weapon stations used by the US military on its armored vehicles and ships. It allows weapon operators to engage targets without leaving the protection of their vehicle. ...

. The park is home to

Douglas squirrel The Douglas squirrel (''Tamiasciurus douglasii'') is a pine squirrel found in western North America, from the Pacific Northwest (including the northwestern coastal states of the United States as well as the southwestern coast of British Columb ...

s and

northern coyote The coyote (''Canis latrans''), also known as the American jackal, prairie wolf, or brush wolf, is a species of canine native to North America. It is smaller than its close relative, the gray wolf, and slightly smaller than the closely relat ...

s. Both lakes provide habitat for

Canada geese The Canada goose (''Branta canadensis''), sometimes called Canadian goose, is a large species of goose with a black head and neck, white cheeks, white under its chin, and a brown body. It is native to the arctic and temperate regions of North ...

mallards The mallard () or wild duck (''Anas platyrhynchos'') is a dabbling duck that breeds throughout the temperate and subtropical Americas, Eurasia, and North Africa. It has been introduced to New Zealand, Australia, Peru, Brazil, Uruguay, Argen ...

, and other waterfowl. The upper lake is home to

crawfish Crayfish are freshwater crustaceans belonging to the infraorder Astacidea, which also contains lobsters. Taxonomically, they are members of the superfamilies Astacoidea and Parastacoidea. They breathe through feather-like gills. Some spe ...

and

minnows Minnow is the common name for a number of species of small freshwater fish, belonging to several genera of the family Cyprinidae and in particular the subfamily Leuciscinae. They are also known in Ireland as pinkeens. While the common name can ...

. The lower lake has schools of

brown bullhead The brown bullhead (''Ameiurus nebulosus'') is a fish of the family Ictaluridae that is widely distributed in North America. It is a species of bullhead catfish and is similar to the black bullhead (''Ameiurus melas'') and yellow bullhead (' ...

, a fish in the

catfish Catfish (or catfishes; order (biology), order Siluriformes or Nematognathi) are a diverse group of ray-finned fish. Catfish are common name, named for their prominent barbel (anatomy), barbels, which resemble a cat's whiskers, though not ...

order, which can sometimes be viewed from the bridge by the golf shop.

Invasive animal species

Some common invasive animals include Eastern gray squirrel,

American bull frog The American bullfrog (''Lithobates catesbeianus''), often simply known as the bullfrog in Canada and the United States, is a large true frog native to eastern North America. It typically inhabits large permanent water bodies such as swamps, po ...

, European chafer beetle and European fire ants. In early 2012 a

blotched snakehead The blotched snakehead (''Channa maculata'') is a species of snakehead. It is one of four species of the genus ''Channa'' native to China. It is also native to northern Vietnam and Taiwan, but has been widely introduced to other countries, where ...

was seen in

YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...

videos of Central Park's lagoon. Because of the invasive and aggressive nature of the snakehead, scientists were called in, the lagoon was drained, and the fish was captured. There is no evidence it reproduced or spread its range, and so the snakehead had not spread to British Columbia. File:Squirrel in Central Park.JPG, alt=An invasive eastern gray squirrel in Burnaby's Central Park., An invasive Eastern gray squirrel in Burnaby's Central Park. File:Northern snakehead fish in hands.jpg, alt=Northern snakehead fish in hands., An invasive

snakehead fish The snakeheads are members of the freshwater perciform fish family Channidae, native to parts of Africa and Asia. These elongated, predatory fish are distinguished by their long dorsal fins, large mouths, and shiny teeth. They breathe air with ...

Plant life

This

second growth forest A secondary forest (or second-growth forest) is a forest or woodland area which has regenerated through largely natural processes after human-caused disturbances, such as timber harvest or agriculture clearing, or equivalently disruptive natura ...

is dominated by

Douglas fir The Douglas fir (''Pseudotsuga menziesii'') is an evergreen conifer species in the pine family, Pinaceae. It is the tallest tree in the Pinaceae family. It is native to western North America and is also known as Douglas-fir, Douglas spruce, Or ...

western hemlock ''Tsuga heterophylla'', the western hemlock or western hemlock-spruce, is a species of hemlock native to the northwest coast of North America, with its northwestern limit on the Kenai Peninsula, Alaska, and its southeastern limit in northern ...

, and

western red cedar ''Thuja plicata'' is a large evergreen coniferous tree in the family Cupressaceae, native to the Pacific Northwest of North America. Its common name is western redcedar in the U.S. or western red cedar in the UK, and it is also called pacific re ...

Vine maple ''Acer circinatum'', or vine maple, is a species of maple native to northwestern North America. Vine maple typically grows as a low-elevation coastal tree in temperate areas of high precipitation such as the west coast of Oregon and northern Cal ...

spruce A spruce is a tree of the genus ''Picea'' ( ), a genus of about 40 species of coniferous evergreen trees in the family Pinaceae, found in the northern temperate and boreal ecosystem, boreal (taiga) regions of the Northern hemisphere. ''Picea'' ...

birch A birch is a thin-leaved deciduous hardwood tree of the genus ''Betula'' (), in the family Betulaceae, which also includes alders, hazels, and hornbeams. It is closely related to the beech- oak family Fagaceae. The genus ''Betula'' contains 3 ...

and

elderberry ''Sambucus'' is a genus of between 20 and 30 species of flowering plants in the family Adoxaceae. The various species are commonly referred to as elder, with the flowers as elderflower, and the fruit as elderberry. Description Elders are most ...

are present, and each have a significant share of the tree

overstory In biology, the canopy is the aboveground portion of a plant cropping or crop, formed by the collection of individual plant crowns. In forest ecology, the canopy is the upper layer or habitat zone, formed by mature tree crowns and includ ...

Salmonberry ''Rubus spectabilis'', the salmonberry, is a species of bramble in the rose family Rosaceae, native to the west coast of North America from west-central Alaska to California, inland as far as Idaho. Like many other species in the genus ''Rubus' ...

thimbleberry ''Rubus parviflorus'', the fruit of which is commonly called the thimbleberry or redcap, is a species of ''Rubus'' with large hairy leaves and no thorns. The species is native to northern temperate regions of North America. It produces red ag ...

huckleberry Huckleberry is a name used in North America for several plants in the family Ericaceae, in two closely related genera: ''Vaccinium'' and ''Gaylussacia''. Nomenclature The name 'huckleberry' is a North American variation of the English dialectal ...

and

trailing blackberry ''Rubus ursinus'' is a North American species of blackberry or dewberry, known by the common names California blackberry, California dewberry, Douglas berry, Pacific blackberry, Pacific dewberry and trailing blackberry. Description ''Rubus ursin ...

provide edible fruit for humans and animals, and together with

hollyhock ''Alcea'' is a genus of over 80 species of flowering plants in the mallow family Malvaceae, commonly known as the hollyhocks. They are native to Asia and Europe. The single species of hollyhock from the Americas, the Iliamna rivularis, streamban ...

make up the shrub understory.

Sword A sword is an edged and bladed weapons, edged, bladed weapon intended for manual cutting or thrusting. Its blade, longer than a knife or dagger, is attached to a hilt and can be straight or curved. A thrusting sword tends to have a straighter ...

and bracken ferns are also abundant. The native vine orange honeysuckle can be found growing up tree trunks near Swangard Stadium.

Invasive plant species

Burnaby Central Park has a few invasive plant species that the city is working to remove. These plans were implemented in 2011 along the 2.5 kilometer trail as known as Trail of Hope and is primarily run by volunteers even to this day. Some of these invasive plant species that populate Central Park are English holly,

English ivy ''Hedera helix'', the common ivy, European ivy, King's Choice ivy, or just ivy, is a species of flowering plant in the family Araliaceae. It is native to most of Europe and parts of western Asia. Ivy is a clinging evergreen vine that grows on t ...

, Butterfly-bush,

Japanese knotweed ''Reynoutria japonica'', synonyms ''Fallopia japonica'' and ''Polygonum cuspidatum'', is a species of herbaceous perennial plant in the knotweed and buckwheat family Polygonaceae. Common names include Japanese knotweed and Asian knotweed. It is ...

, Policeman's helmet, and Periwinkle. Community organizations are part of an ongoing effort to reduce and eliminate invasive plant species. The Invasive Species Counsel of British Columbia has non-profit status, and spreads public awareness in addition to dealing with invasive plants directly.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Central Park Parks in Burnaby Metrotown, Burnaby