A new regional park has been established on Pender Island by the Capital Regional District (CRD).
The CRD created this new park for residents and visitors to enjoy by purchasing two properties and transferring a former community park to create a new, combined, 21.7-hectare regional park on North Pender Island.
Because the community park that partly comprises this new regional Park was the George Hill Community Park, the name will become George Hill Regional Park for the time being.
The CRD says that renaming or co-naming the new regional park with an Indigenous name may be explored in collaboration with local First Nations in the future.
The park’s namesake is thought to be after Captain George Richards, who surveyed the area for the Royal Navy and contributed to a map drawn in 1861.
According to the CRD, the new regional park will feature panoramic views of the Southern Gulf Islands, and will provide both forested and summit hiking opportunities to visitors.
It is located within the Coastal Douglas-fir Moist Maritime Biogeoclimatic subzone which provides a Mediterranean-like climate, allowing flora and fauna to thrive.
The CRD reportedly paid a total of just under $1.9 million for the additional two properties and the park transfer. This purchase was made using a combination of Regional Parks’ reserve funds and the Regional Parks Land Acquisition Fund.
“The CRD recognizes both the conservation and recreation value of the properties acquired on North Pender to create a new regional park,” said Cliff McNeil-Smith, CRD Board Chair.
“This acquisition creates new opportunities to protect unique ecosystems and expand recreational opportunities for people on Pender Islands and across the region.”
According to the CRD, they have acquired approximately 4,900 hectares of land for regional parks and trails since 2000 allowing the regional park system to grow from 8,400 hectares to more than 13,300.
