Crews using heavy machinery fenced off and filled in the 40-year-old swimming lake at Aldergrove Lake Regional Park last week. The posted sign in photo explains the closure to park visitors.

Crews using heavy machinery fenced off and filled in the 40-year-old swimming lake at Aldergrove Lake Regional Park last week. The posted sign in photo explains the closure to park visitors.

Public input sought for Aldergrove Lake Park plan

Aldergrove Lake Park plan Metro Vancouver Parks

The process to create a management plan for Aldergrove Lake Regional Park is underway.

The first public open house for sharing ideas on what the park should include will be held on Tuesday, June 28 at Aldergrove Community Secondary School, from 4 to 9 p.m.

“Aldergrove Lake Regional Park is one big, beautiful public space with lots of potential,” said Gayle Martin, Metro Vancouver Parks Committee Chair.

“The opportunity to consider new recreational and conservation enhancements, programs and services is an exciting prospect.”

This 280 hectare park welcomes over 350,000 visitors a year, who come to walk, jog, cycle, ride horseback, picnic, enjoy nature, or visit the dog leash-optional area.

For years, the park has been well known for its popular swimming feature, which closed permanently this year for reasons of health, safety and environmental protection.

The facility has been decommissioned, and landscaping is underway at the site to create a picnic area with gravel paths, and lawn and sand play areas.

The park management planning process will determine long-term uses for this and other areas of the park.

Aldergrove Lake Regional Park is located in the southeast corner of Langley, straddling the Abbotsford border to Lefeuvre Road, and hugging the U.S. border to the south along 0 Avenue.

The park offers expansive and stunning views of neighbouring agricultural lands and the Cascade Mountains, including Mount Baker.

Park features include Aldergrove Bowl (a popular spot for events), the historic lake site, heritage homes and farms, Pepin Brook (home to endangered Nooksack Dace and Salish Sucker) and the Big Rock, a remnant of the last Ice Age.

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For more information and to follow the planning process, visit

www.metrovancouver.org/planning

Aldergrove Star