New Westminster Environmental Almanac (2917 ... - Douglas College

Parks and Greenspaces
Queens Park
(30.35 hectares, 75.00 acres)
Bordered on its four sides by First Street, Sixth Ave, McBride
Boulevard, and Royal Ave, Queen’s Park is the largest greenspace in
New Westminster. At 30.35 hectares, it comprises almost 30% of the
City’s total parkland.
The land for the park was offered to the City by the provincial
government in 1886 and was designated for public use as a park in 1888.
The annual Royal Agriculture and Industrial Society Exhibition was held
here from 1890 until 1929 when a fire destroyed all but one of the
buildings. The only structure to survive that fire was the Vagabond
Theatre, now known as the Bernie Legge Theatre but was originally
constructed in 1909 as a Fisheries building. Today’s petting zoo is just a
reminder of an older zoo built in the park in 1905 that enclosed bear,
wolves, coyotes, deer, and tropical birds. The present zoo opened 45
years after the closure of the original zoo.
Today, Queens Park is known for its variety of excellent recreational and
sport facilities as well as the diversity of its numerous large trees.
Queens Park is home to many plant and animal species. At least 42 plant
species can be found in the Park, including both native and non-native
vegetation. Some of the more notable tree species are:
Douglas Fir, Pseudotsuga menziesii – a native to the west coast
Douglas Fir can grow to be 90m tall and over 1000 years old. Its
thick corky bark is an adaptation to protect it from forest fires.
Western Red Cedar, Thuja plicata – a native to the west coast, was
used extensively by the coastal First Nations to make dugout canoes,
totem poles, clothing and many other items. The wood is naturally
resistant to rotting.
Western Larch (or Western Tamarack), Larix occidentalis – a
native to the west coast is one of the few deciduous coniferous trees.
It loses all its needles during the winter to conserve water.
28