The city’s park board is expected to give the Stanley Park Hollow Tree Conservation Society — which faces a $32,000 shortfall — one last chance tonight to save what might be Vancouver’s most famous tree.
A staff recommendation by the Vancouver Board of Parks and Recreation proposes that the society be given a final three-month extension to complete restoration of Stanley Park’s Hollow Tree.
“The Society’s challenges with their fundraising efforts and construction delays have prolonged the unsightly, under-construction image of the Hollow Tree stabilization work area in Stanley Park,” the recommendation’s summary reads.
The tree is actually the hollowed trunk of a seven-centuries-old Western Red Cedar and is one of Vancouver’s best-known tourist attractions.
Windstorms in December 2006 heavily damaged soils at the tree’s base and accelerated its degradation.
In 2008, the park board approved removal of the tree, which now lists at an 11-degree angle, saying it poses a hazard to park visitors.
The conservation society has since been working to right the tree with a brace system, funded by donations from the public. The total cost of the project is an estimated $250,000.
In August, the society said the project had lost momentum because of funding shortfalls and engineering delays. A request for more time to complete the tree’s restoration was submitted for approval in September.
