The deteriorating state of Franklin Park in Northwest Vancouver is an embarrassment. There is an irrigation system, but the city hasn’t turned it on for a couple of years, I think. They mow the weeds occasionally, but that only leaves little spiky weed stems that are dangerous for anyone barefooted. This no longer is a pleasant place to spend time. It’s become a wasteland. I’ve noticed that other neighborhood parks also are dry and brown and uncared-for. No money for maintenance?
— John Harrison, Northwest neighborhood
John, you put your finger right on it: No money.
Of course it infuriates people to say “no money” about a city with a total 2013-14 biennial budget of $752.4 million. But the citizens of Vancouver were directly involved in setting policy about spending any of those millions on park irrigation. This question remains a summertime favorite nonetheless, Vancouver public works spokeswoman Loretta Callahan said.
So here’s some quick background. Property taxes provide the backbone for city services. Voter-approved Initiative 747, which passed in 2001, capped annual property tax increases at 1 percent or the rate of inflation, whichever is less, so property taxes just don’t keep up with costs anymore. And it’s not like city water is free; by state law, the city general fund is billed for the water it uses just like any other customer.
When the Vancouver City Council sought public input prior to making some painful decisions about the recession-hobbled 2009-10 budget, residents didn’t prioritize neighborhood park irrigation.