Here are the current threats (and one opportunity) to the Green Timbers Urban Forest
City Council contact information is at the bottom of this article. Council needs your feedback so they can give proper direction to city planners. Green Timbers needs to be seen as a valuable asset to the City, and not something in the way of building wider roads and development.
1) Widening of Fraser Highway:
Proposed widening of Fraser Highway.
Surrey wants to widen the highway from 2 lanes to 4 lanes, plus 2 train tracks, plus a bike/pedestrian path. That’s widening it from about 12 meters to 45 meters. Wow. You’ll be able to land a jet plane in that space. Do people need to get to Fleetwood, Clayton and Langley? Absolutely. Is cutting down more trees and fragmenting Green Timbers more the right approach? Absolutely not. There are lots of options: let’s give proper consideration to the park, and not assume it’s useless space in the way.
Click here to sign the petition
Or, copy and paste this link into your browser: https://www.change.org/p/mayor-linda-hepner-keep-green-timbers-urban-forest-intact?recruiter=8051639&utm_source=share_for_starters&utm_medium=copyLink
Please consider signing and share with anyone who may be interested.
2) Widening of 100 Avenue:
The City plans to widen 100th Avenue from two to four lanes between 140 and 148th Streets. This will isolate the northern bit of the Green Timbers Forest even more. Once again, the idea seems to be that the forest and park are not as important as getting people into a parking lot at Guildford as quickly as possible.
3) Opportunity: it looks like a park, feels like a park… let’s make it part of the park!
Two properties up for rezoning
Two properties nestled inside the urban forest are in the process of being rezoned for development. They belong to the City and are directly opposite the Jim Pattison Outpatient Centre at Green Timbers Way and 140 Street. Anyone walking or driving by, or flying overhead would think they’re part of the park. They’re partly forested. The City wants to develop them into a homeless shelter, transitional housing, a facility for seniors with dementia, and a bio-energy facility. The irony of that last proposal is they’d have to clear land to build a green-energy facility! These are all worthy ideas, but is this the best use of this space for the long term? We think these should be part of the park.
Summary:
It appears that although Green Timbers is valued as a green space, it’s not seen as a whole. Pieces that are historically part of this area are readied for development, and roadways are being widened, leading to further fragmentation and isolation of this forest. Shouldn’t there be a plan that takes the whole park into consideration? Please let your City Councillors know how you feel about these threats … and this opportunity!
City Contacts:
Barbara Steele Councillor (604) 591-4623 HBSteele@surrey.ca
Bruce Hayne Councillor (604) 591-4025 BruceHayne@surrey.ca
David Woods Councillor (604) 591-4349 Dave.Woods@surrey.ca
Judy Villeneuve Councillor (604) 591-4625 JAVilleneuve@surrey.ca
Mary Martin Councillor (604) 591-4622 MMartin@surrey.ca
Michael Starchuk Councillor (604) 591-4346 Mike.Starchuk@surrey.ca
Tom Gill Councillor (604) 591-4634 TSGill@surrey.ca
Linda Hepner Mayor (604) 591-4126 mayor@surrey.ca
