Champlain Heights was identified in Vancouver Park's Board Vanplay plan to need a playground renewal in 2015. There was some initial consultation in 2015, but nothing till 2018. The existing playgrounds in the neighbourhood are close to 30 years old, likely older, and are in various states of disrepair. 

In late 2018, consultation started in earnest, and it basically concluded that the Playground at Champlain and Matheson would be replaced, and a new playground at Champlain Heights Park would be replaced and moved to the west side of the community center. The original completion date was aiming for Fall 2019. After the consultation, that changed to Spring 2020. 

But then basically nothing happened from March 2019 to April 2021, when construction started on the SE Playground at Champlain and Matheson Crescents- This playground was replaced over the course of several months and opened in July 2021. It replaced a much larger playground and features very little of what was asked for in the consultation process. In fact aside from the placement of the playground, there was exactly zero consultation for what would replace it- all consultation was centred on the main playground. 

In July 2021- the completion date for the main playground was moved again to Mid-2022.  

Given that this playground is expected to be in excess of 450k based upon the original RFP (which was never awarded according to the city's records). It would require the Park Board to put it to tender. So there's no way it's going to meet that Mid-2022 completion date.  

I want the Park Board to come clean with why there has been such a delay for this playground on the east side while other playgrounds identified at the same time have been open for a year already. Kids in 2015 who would have benefited from this renewal are all in their teens already. 

These delays are far above the average time from consultation to opening for every other park renewal in the city- At minimum Champlain Heights has been waiting four years, so far, and I would argue that the community has been waiting since 2015.