The Lighthouse Park Preservation Society is requesting that the District of West Vancouver explain how pay-parking revenue from Lighthouse Park is being spent and dedicate the funds to additional ranger staffing at the popular seaside attraction.
In a letter to the mayor and council, society president Alexandra Mancini writes that when pay parking began as a pilot in February 2024, the district said net proceeds would “be used for maintenance of the subject parks.” She says the group later discovered a November 2024 council resolution directing the funds to the broader Parks, Culture and Community Services budget instead.
“It is very disconcerting to realize now that the needs of Lighthouse Park are not likely to be given priority when deciding how to use pay parking proceeds that have been absorbed into the large budget for Parks, Culture, and Community Services, an extremely broad scope within West Vancouver,” she wrote.
“We had a very different understanding about the use of net proceeds from pay parking,” Mancini told council, adding that the money “will be a mere drop in a very large bucket” if spread district-wide.
The society is also pressing for more on-site oversight. “We know that Mayor and Council appreciate the unique qualities of Lighthouse Park’s old-growth forest and its value to our community. What you perhaps do not know is how understaffed that park is. For 3 days a week, a single Ranger from the Parks Department is assigned to monitor visitor activities within the park and perform certain maintenance tasks. That’s it. For 4 days a week, there is no Ranger presence in the park. This is grossly inadequate coverage for this cherished old-growth park,” she wrote.
She cited a May 11 incident in which a visitor reported a smouldering campfire at Shore Pine Point; the on-duty ranger helped guide firefighters to the scene.“More Park Rangers are sorely needed to provide adequate oversight of park use every day,” she wrote.
The preservation society want the council to clarify why the allocation policy changed and to ensure most of the parking revenue collected at Lighthouse Park is reinvested there.
Parks, be it West Van, Vancouver City, District of North Van., Surrey, you name it, none (In my opinion), should have broad based 100% pay parking…..time limited perhaps, or some certain key areas could have pay zones, but all parks should retain large swaths of free parking. Period.