Hastings Park

Last updated
Hastings Park
Hastings Park Entrance.jpg
The PNE entrance to Hasting Park
Hastings Park
TypePublic Park
Location Vancouver, British Columbia
Coordinates 49°17′02″N123°02′17″W / 49.284°N 123.038°W / 49.284; -123.038
Area62 hectares (150 acres)
Created1888
Operated byCity of Vancouver

Hastings Park is a municipal park located in the northeast sector of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, in the Hastings-Sunrise neighbourhood. The 62 hectares (150 acres) park features several sports and recreation facilities, including Hastings Racecourse and Playland amusement park. The southern portions of the park are also used as the fairgrounds for the Pacific National Exhibition.

Contents

The park was granted in trust by the government of British Columbia to the City of Vancouver. Horse racing first took place at the park in 1892, with the PNE holding its first exhibition in 1910. An amusement park was opened at Hastings Park in 1926.

Etymology

Its name references the Hastings Townsite, part of which was also known as New Brighton, which lay at the end of the Douglas Road from New Westminster, founded as a resort and watering-hole and as a port to connect the other settlements of the inlet—Gastown, Moodyville and Barnet—to the city.

History

The land was originally granted in trust to the City by the Province in 1888 as part of the will of its late owner, with the site to be kept in perpetuity as wilderness park for public use. However, throughout most of the twentieth century, Hastings Park has been home to two institutions: the Pacific National Exhibition (PNE) and the Hastings Racecourse, and the PNE's amusement park, Playland. Over the years, the site lost its park character because of the construction of many buildings and parking lots. These included the long-vanished Exhibition Building, a Mission-style affair with ornate cupolas and decor, torn down by the 1920s due to structural inefficiencies. In its place three large art deco concrete buildings and one smaller one - the Showmart, Food Building and Forum and the Gardens, respectively.

Dormatorys at the forum in Hastings Park. The park was used to house Japanese Canadians who were being processed for internment. Dormitory, Hastings Park VPL 14918 (32656059084).JPG
Dormatorys at the forum in Hastings Park. The park was used to house Japanese Canadians who were being processed for internment.

Following Canada's declaration of war on Imperial Japan in 1942, Hastings Park was used to house and process Japanese Canadians before being sent to internment camps in the interior of British Columbia. [1]

Over time PNE facilities grew in the post-war period by the addition of the BC Building, housing the once-famous Challenger Relief Map of British Columbia and the Agrodome, plus the regular expansion of buildings and structures in Playland, most visibly its roller coaster, prominent on the eastern approach into the city via Hastings Street and via Highway 1, but also a vintage games arcade and electric bumper-car "rink". Next to it, in time for the British Empire Games hosted by Vancouver in 1954, was Empire Stadium, its concrete stands now a community track and sport facility. Added still later was the Pacific Coliseum, the park's largest single structure and for many years the city's largest indoor sports and entertainment venue (with Empire Stadium being the largest outdoor). Operations at the racecourse also expanded over times, with an extensive collection of horse barns and horse-trailer parking lots.

A Restoration Plan was prepared with the neighbourhood residents and approved by the City in 1997.

Grounds

Facilities

View of the track for Hastings Racecourse Hastings Racecourse Track.jpg
View of the track for Hastings Racecourse

Demolished buildings

Sanctuary

The Sanctuary boardwalk The Sanctuary at Hastings Park.JPG
The Sanctuary boardwalk

The sanctuary at Hastings Park was one of the many developments made between 1997 and 2001 in order to improve the facilities associated with the park. [2] Within the sanctuary is a large pond surrounded by native plants and walkways. The sanctuary also supports many species of birds and small animals. Furthermore, the pond is stocked with rainbow trout that can be fished for off of a small dock at the northwest corner of the pond.

The Creekway Park is a daylighted stream that will connect the sanctuary to New Brighton Park. [2] This project, which completed its first stage in September 2013, also includes new pedestrian and bicycle pathways between the two parks as well as providing an ecological corridor to the Burrard Inlet. [3] The sanctuary area of the park continues to be developed. [4]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pacific Coliseum</span> Indoor arena in Vancouver, Canada

Pacific Coliseum, known to locals as "The Coliseum" or the "Rink on Renfrew," is an indoor arena located at Hastings Park in Vancouver, British Columbia. Its main use has been for ice hockey and the arena has been the home for several ice hockey teams.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Empire Stadium (Vancouver)</span>

Empire Stadium was a multi-purpose stadium that stood at the Pacific National Exhibition site at Hastings Park in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Track and field and Canadian football, as well as soccer, rugby and musical events, were held at the stadium. The stadium was originally constructed for the 1954 British Empire and Commonwealth Games. The stadium hosted both Elvis Presley and The Beatles. It saw most of its use as the home of the BC Lions of the CFL from 1954 to 1982, in which the venue also played host to the first Grey Cup game held west of Ontario in 1955. Empire Stadium also hosted the Grey Cup game in 1958, 1960, 1963, 1966, 1971, and 1974; seven times in total.

The Pacific National Exhibition (PNE) is a nonprofit organization that operates an annual 15-day summer fair, 10-day winter fair, a seasonal amusement park, and indoor arenas in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The PNE fair is held at Hastings Park, beginning in mid-to-late August and ending in early September, usually Labour Day, and in mid-December until Christmas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Playland (Vancouver)</span> Amusement park in Vancouver, BC

Playland Amusement Park is an amusement park in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The amusement park is located at Hastings Park and is operated by the Pacific National Exhibition (PNE), an organization that hosts an annual summer fair and exhibition adjacent to Playland. Playland opened at its current location in 1958, although its predecessor, Happyland, operated at Hastings Park from 1929 to 1957. Playland was formally made a division of the PNE in 1993.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hastings–Sunrise</span> Neighbourhood of Vancouver in British Columbia, Canada

Hastings–Sunrise is a neighbourhood located in the northeastern corner of the city of Vancouver, British Columbia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vancouver VooDoo</span> Ice hockey team in Vancouver, British Columbia

The Vancouver VooDoo were an inline hockey team based in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, which played in Roller Hockey International (RHI). The VooDoo were one of the original 12 teams to join the league in 1993. Founded and owned by Tiger Williams and Bill McMenamon, the team played in the PNE Agrodome in 1993 and 1994, the Pacific Coliseum in 1995. In 1996, the team played in General Motors Place after being sold to Orca Bay Sports and Entertainment, but folded in 1996.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of Vancouver</span>

The history of Vancouver, British Columbia, is one that extends back thousands of years, with its first inhabitants arriving in the area following the Last Glacial Period. With its location on the western coast of Canada near the mouth of the Fraser River and on the waterways of the Strait of Georgia, Howe Sound, Burrard Inlet, and their tributaries, Vancouver has – for thousands of years – been a place of meeting, trade, and settlement.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">PNE Agrodome</span> Sports arena in British Columbia

PNE Agrodome is a sports arena located in Vancouver, British Columbia. It was built in 1963 and holds 5,000 people or 3,260 when configured to use the hockey or lacrosse surface.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Corkscrew (Playland)</span>

Corkscrew was a steel roller coaster located at 'Playland At the PNE' amusement park in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. It is famous for its appearance in the 2006 motion picture Final Destination 3 and the 2012 motion picture Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days, as well as the popular television series Smallville.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sports in Vancouver</span> Overview of sports traditions and activities in Vancouver

There have been a wide variety of sports in Vancouver since the city was founded. Team sports such as ice hockey, lacrosse, and Canadian football have extensive history in the area, while the city's relatively mild climate and geographical location facilitate a wide variety of other sports and recreational activities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hastings Mill</span>

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hastings Street (Vancouver)</span>

Hastings Street is one of the most important east-west traffic corridors in the cities of Vancouver and Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada, and used to be a part of the decommissioned Highway 7A. In the central business district of Downtown Vancouver, it is known as West Hastings Street; at Carrall Street it becomes East Hastings Street and runs eastwards through East Vancouver and Burnaby. In Burnaby, there is no east-west designation. The street ends in Westridge, a neighbourhood at the foot of Burnaby Mountain where it joins the recently built Burnaby Mountain Parkway and diverges from the continuation of the former Highway 7A as the Barnet Highway, to Port Moody, British Columbia.

The Forum is an indoor arena in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada located on the grounds of the Pacific National Exhibition.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hastings Racecourse</span>

Hastings Racecourse is a horse-racing facility at Hastings Park, four miles from downtown Vancouver. Originally called East Park, it opened for business in 1889, making it Vancouver's longest continuously used professional sports facility. The racing operation is currently a wholly owned subsidiary of the Great Canadian Gaming Corporation, which acquired the lease of the city-owned track in 2004.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Great Vancouver Fire</span> 1886 fire that burned down most of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

The Great Vancouver Fire destroyed most of the newly incorporated city of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, on June 13, 1886. It started as two land clearing fires to the west of the city. The first fire was further away from the city and was clearing land for the roundhouse of the terminus of the Canadian Pacific Railway. The second fire was clearing land to extend the city to the west. The Great Fire occurred shortly after the township of Granville was incorporated into the City of Vancouver.

The British Columbia Derby is a Canadian Thoroughbred horse race run annually in September at Hastings Racecourse in Vancouver, British Columbia. Established in 2023, the British Columbia Derby is the third and final jewel of the Western Canadian Triple Crown.

This is a timeline of the history of Vancouver.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Empire Field</span>

Empire Field was a temporary Canadian football and soccer stadium built at Hastings Park in the Canadian city of Vancouver, British Columbia. Located on the site of the former Empire Stadium, the 27,528 spectator venue was constructed to allow a new retractable roof to be installed at BC Place in 2010 and 2011. Empire Field was home to the Canadian Football League's (CFL) BC Lions for the 2010 and part of the 2011 seasons, and for Major League Soccer's (MLS) Vancouver Whitecaps FC for part of their debut 2011 season.

Con Jones Park was a sports facility located in East Vancouver that was mainly used for soccer. It opened in 1921, and was renamed Callister Park in 1942. After the demolition of the stadium in 1971, the area was redeveloped into a green space and retained the name Callister Park.

The Vancouver bid for the 2030 Winter Olympics was a proposed bid to bring the 2030 Winter Olympics to the province of British Columbia in Canada, with Vancouver and Whistler were expected to serve as the main host cities. Vancouver and Whistler previously hosted the 2010 Winter Olympics and the 2010 Winter Paralympics, while Canada also hosted the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal, the 1976 Winter Paralympics in Toronto and the 1988 Winter Olympics with Calgary as main host, along another venues in the province of Alberta.

References

  1. ↑ "History". Hastings Park 1942. 2016-06-23. Retrieved 2022-01-12.
  2. 1 2 http://vancouver.ca/files/cov/HastingsParkPNE-doco-MasterPlan.pdf [ bare URL PDF ]
  3. ↑ Vancouver, City of (23 July 2015). "Transforming Hastings Park and the PNE". vancouver.ca.
  4. ↑ Hastings Park Master Plan

Commons-logo.svg Media related to Hastings Park at Wikimedia Commons

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.