The District of Squamish is seeking input from the community to develop a permanent park use program for businesses and non-profit organizations 

The District of Squamish is seeking community feedback to help inform a new park use program that will make it simple for businesses and non-profit organizations to book and use District park space in Squamish. The program will expand on the temporary program launched in June 2020 to allow businesses and non-profit organizations to operate outdoors in order to meet COVID-19 physical distancing requirements. Two separate surveys for businesses and non-profit organizations are now online at letstalksquamish.ca/park-use-program. The surveys will be open through April 5, 2022. 

“Outdoor parks and spaces add vibrancy and opportunities for connection to our community and the demand for municipal park use in Squamish continues to grow,” says District of Squamish Mayor Karen Elliott. “We look forward to building on the success of our temporary park use program by creating a permanent system in order to allow businesses and non-profit organizations to book and use municipal park space with ease. We look forward to hearing from our businesses and non-profit organizations, as well as community members, about their visions for park use in Squamish and how we can spend more time outside together.” 

The District is seeking input from: 

• Park users;
• Residents who live near a park;
• Businesses or non-profit organizations who used park space through the Temporary Park Use Program;
• Business or non-profit organizations who want to use park space; or
• Businesses located near a park. 

The park use program will allow local businesses and non-profit organizations to offer a range of outdoor programming, events and experiences in District parks including fitness programming, education services, arts and culture experiences, mental health services, family programming and retail pop-ups. 

Special events such as concerts, festivals, markets and filming will continue to be processed through a separate application process.  

Feedback from the surveys will help to inform recommendations to Council about what should be considered in creating the new park use program. 

Survey results will be presented to Council in the Spring of 2022. 

The temporary park use program will expire on June 1, 2022. 

March 14, 2022