May 26, 2026 - Minutes

Date:

Tuesday, May 26, 2026

Place:

Anderson Room
Richmond City Hall

Present:

Councillor Michael Wolfe, Chair
Councillor Laura Gillanders
Councillor Andy Hobbs
Councillor Bill McNulty

Also Present:

Councillor Carol Day

Call to Order:

The Chair called the meeting to order at 4:00 p.m.

MINUTES

It was moved and seconded

That the minutes of the meeting of the Parks, Recreation and Cultural Services Committee held on April 28, 2026, be adopted as circulated.

CARRIED

AGENDA ADDITIONS

It was moved and seconded

The Chair advised the London Farm Exterior of Buildings as will be added as Item 2A, and Dog Park in Steveston and Shading Canopy will be added as Item 2B to the agenda.

CARRIED

PARKS, RECREATION & CULTURE DIVISION

1.

2026-2027 Engaging artists in the community program public art projects

(File Ref. No. 11-7000-09-20-089) (REDMS No. 8377012)

In response to a query from Committee, staff advised there will be an open call for businesses, community organizations, stratas, and more, to apply to the mural program, which will be at the end of summer.

It was moved and seconded

That the 2026–2027 Engaging Artists in Community Program Public Art Projects as presented in the report titled “2026–2027 Engaging Artists in Community Program Public Art Projects”, dated May 4, 2026, from the General Manager, Parks, Recreation and Culture, be approved.

CARRIED

2.

steveston cannery channel dredging project update and expanded scope of work

(File Ref. No. 11-7200-01) (REDMS No. 8366373)

Discussion ensued with respect to partnership funding and having a strategy in place to ensure regular ongoing maintenance and dredging.

In response to queries from Committee, staff noted (i) it has been the channel frontage that was formally dredged during the last two rounds of dredging with the partnerships, (ii) the Steveson Harbour Authority has been extensively consulted on the project, (iii) given the regulations and  restrictions, the majority of the work is clamshell dredging, (iv) Phase 2 is commencing in June and will carry on until February 2027, and will include the continuation of the channel to the east end and also include the City’s waterlot channel frontages, (v) the work falls under maintenance dredging, which is a much more expedited process for approval, (vi) with respect to the timeline, the previous dredging process (started in 2013) was almost a 10 year cycle, whereas the timeline for the current process is likely a five year cycle, having significantly reduced the timeframe for approvals, permitting construction dredging projects, etc.

It was moved and seconded

(1)

That a one-time additional level request of $1,000,000 for dredging Imperial Landing and Britannia Shipyards City waterlot landside frontages as detailed in the report titled “Steveston Cannery Channel Dredging Project Update and Expanded Scope of Work”, from the General Manager, Parks, Recreation and Culture, dated May 4, 2026, be considered as part of the 2027 budget process; and

(2)

That a letter be written to the relevant Provincial and Federal ministers and the local MLAs and MPs to advise of the City’s commitment towards the Steveston Cannery Channel Dredging Project and continuation of the four-way partnership model used as well as the dredging type allowance to help with the process.

CARRIED

2A.

London Farm exterior of buildings

It was noted that correspondence had been received from the Chair, Heritage Farm Society, regarding the current condition and maintenance required on the exterior farm buildings at London Farm.  Staff advised there is capital funding available to address the concerns raised and will be working with the Society to ensure all items listed are addressed.

2B.

STEVESTON DOG PARK NEED FOR SHADING AND CANOPY.

It was noted that an email had recently been received from a resident that uses the Steveston Dog Park area, inquiring if the shade that was put up last year, enjoyed by many park users, would be available to put up again this year.  In response, staff noted that the tent that was there last year is one of five temporary tents that were initiated in 2021 as part of the heat dome, and are rotated between various parks in the community, depending on use activities, programs, etc., and this year it was moved to a new location.  However, staff are reviewing one or two other sites to determine if there is as strong a need, and will look at doing something at Steveston Dog Park.

3.

MANAGER’S REPORT

(i)

Final Report:  The Kawo Maru

Staff reported the Kawo Maru event went very well, noting (i) there were close to 70,000 visitors for Saturday and Sunday, (ii) 2,400 members of the public boarded the ship, as well as 28 school classes, and (iii) a detailed event review will be provided as part of the annual City Signature and Community Events program report later this year. 

In response to queries from Committee regarding the overall metrics of the event, staff noted (i) metrics on food truck sales are readily available and can be provided to the Committee, (ii) it was heard anecdotally, that the sales at the Cannery were excellent and staff will follow up with the Merchant’s Association for additional feedback from them as well, (iii) attendance exceeded expectations, likely attributable to the fantastic weather throughout the enter weekend, and (iv) all tickets to board the ship were sold and a waitlist line was maintained throughout each day, successfully providing a further opportunity to board the ship.

(ii)

Richmond Celebrates Soccer

Staff reported (i) the FIFA World Cup Licensing has reviewed the City’s licensing application for all community events and is now for review with local media partners, (ii) to date there is no indication of licensing fees, (iii) the June 12 kickoff event has over 1,300 students registered to attend the morning portion that includes a viewing of the Canada vs. Boznia and Herzegovina game at noon; the afternoon portion will be open to the public and includes a viewing of the USA vs. Paraguay game at 6:00 p.m., (iv) staff will be providing a memo with a listing of all of the community events that will be happening in June and July over the period of the world cup, (v) all of the details about the Richmond Celebrates Soccer event are available on the City’s website, (vi) there are 11 Richmond Celebrates Soccer events planned, (vii) with respect to safety walkthroughs, the Richmond RCMP team have been participating in the planning for that and things are shaping up well, and (viii) staff do not have an indication at this point of what the license fees will be; approval from FIFA has been received and the application is with the media partner.

ADJOURNMENT

It was moved and seconded

That the meeting adjourn (4:36 p.m.).

CARRIED

Certified a true and correct copy of the Minutes of the meeting of the Parks, Recreation and Cultural Services Committee of the Council of the City of Richmond held on Tuesday, May 26, 2026.

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Councillor Michael Wolfe
Chair

Lorraine Anderson
Legislative Services Associate