While it may still be winter, things are blooming at the community garden in View Royal.
Council recently approved the expansion of up to 10 beds this year at the garden in View Royal Park. The total cost is estimated to be about $1,500.
“It’s for those people that they’re at a stage in life, where perhaps they’re in an apartment and don’t own a house yet or don’t have access to a garden but love to garden,” said John Rosenberg, director of engineering and parks with the Town of View Royal.
“There’s something to to said about the social aspect of showing up and there’s three or four other people gardening at the same time. It’s an opportunity to socialize with your neighbours.”
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Originally built in 2013 as part of the Town’s master parks plan in 2010, the community garden currently has 39 beds and a wait list of about seven people. The volunteer View Royal Community Garden Society came on board in 2015 to help maintain the park. Currently, pollinator beds are under construction and will be designed to surround the new beds.
The expansion was part of the garden society’s five-year plan for the park, which includes the creation of a greenhouse, a common market garden and installation of an irrigation system, as well as the addition of another eight beds per year until 2022.
However those have not yet been approved, as the Town is still figuring out how such an expansion would impact the park.
“We don’t have adequate parking if we go to 90 beds. Right now, we have 12 parking spots and the park is being expanded annually,” Rosenberg said, adding if the Town adds parking spots and washroom facilities, there’s the potential to expand the garden in the future. “That’s one of the things we’ll be looking at in the future is when is it appropriate to expand again.”
Rosenberg expects the new beds will be installed in early spring in order for the society get them ready for the growing season. For more information on the community garden visit viewroyal.ca.