From updating trails to repairing tennis courts, here is what else is going on in Saanich Parks.
- Braefoot Park - Field lighting upgrades
- Copley West Park - building updates
- Cuthbert Holmes and Tillicum Parks - tree work
- Electric vehicle charging station installations - various parks
- Glanford and Layritz Park - gate installation
- Hampton Park - improvements
- Horner and Hampton Parks - Outside the Lines: Court Mural Project for We the West Basketball Festival
- Hyacinth Park - Garry Oak meadow restoration
- Lochside Park - sand soccer field renovation
- Rainbow Park - engineering drain pipe work
- Rudd Park - trail upgrades
Field lighting improvements - Braefoot Park
Saanich Parks in partnership with Lakehill Soccer Association will be upgrading many of the field lights in Braefoot Park [PDF - 158 KB]. Existing tungsten-halide bulbs will be replaced with modern LED lights which are a more sustainable technology and quality of light for sports. A new control box will also be installed giving operators more control over light operations with zones and dimming. The result will be reduced light spill outside of the playing surfaces, more control of light use appropriate for activity, significant energy savings, and improved safety for various sports. 
The sports surfaces where the lights will be replaced are the lacrosse box, artificial field and half of the middle natural field. The lights on the upper natural field will not be addressed with this project.
Virtual Information Night – Wednesday, November 10, 7 to 8 p.m.
Join a virtual session with Saanich Parks, Lakehill Soccer Association and the lighting consultant to learn more about this project. Lakehill Soccer Association is hosting the session via Zoom. Info also posted at www.lakehillsoccer.com/lightreplacement.
Zoom link for online meeting
Meeting ID: 833 2751 5974
Passcode: 347635
Dial in number for audio participation if needed: 1-778-907-2071
Presentation about lighting project [PDF - 3 MB]
Click the zoom link just before 7 p.m. on November 10 to participate.
The installation is anticipated during the period between November 2021, and January 2022, and will take approximately one week. Following installation, lighting consultants and the installer will monitor and adjust lights to ensure minimal overspill of light outside of the field. The installation will involve some machinery and truck movement in the park and parking lot adjacent to the playing fields. We expect any disruptions to be minor, if any, and we thank those affected neighbours for their patience and understanding as we work to improve these assets.
If you have any questions or feedback regarding the project, please contact the Saanich Parks office at 250-475-5522 or parks@saanich.ca by November 8, 2021.
Building Updates - Copley West Park
The building used in Copley West Park [PDF - 86 KB] by our Saanich Neighbourhood Playground Program (SNPP) and the Greater Victoria Football Association is getting a much needed refresh! Coming soon will be new doors, windows and siding. Work to start in 2022 (project delayed).
Park Updates - Cuthbert Holmes and Tillicum Parks
Members of the urban forestry and nautral areas teams will be performing tree work in Cuthbert Holmes [PDF - 218 KB] and Tillicum Parks [PDF - 171 KB] to mitigate trees near main pathways. Such work zones will be clearly marked and paths will be closed for everyone's safety while work is in progress. As a natural areas park, visitors are not to proceed off trail to detour the area. Please respect the active work zones and signs posted.
Work for the winter is now complete. Additional work will occur late Fall 2021. Then our teams will be restoring some of the areas where trees were removed including planting new trees!
Some other exciting updates will be happening around the park too now that the McKenzie Highway interchange project is pretty much done. This includes pathway improvements, invasive Hawthorne tree removals and more restoration and plantings. We have already added new duck boxes, swallow houses and roosting nest structures around the park.
Electric Vehicle Charging Installation in Saanich Parks!
Work is underway installing electric vehicle (EV) charging stations across Saanich. This includes some at Saanich Parks and Recreation facilities! Sites include:
- Hampton Park (June)
- Cedar Hill Golf Course (now open)
- Cedar Hill Recreation Centre (now open)
- G.R. Pearkes Recreation Centre (July)
- Cadboro-Gyro Park (now open)
- Mount Douglas Park (now open)
- Saanich Commonwealth Place (delayed - hopefully November)
- Beckwith Park (now open)
Gate Installation - Layritz and Glanford Parks
A new entrance gate to Layritz Park [PDF - 426 KB] is in place. This was made with beautiful posts made from a fallen sequoia tree. The same tree is the base for the park sign located in the parking lot area.
Glanford Park [PDF - 138 KB] will also get a gate for its parking lot. Just waiting on the gate to arrive!
Improvements - Hampton Park
Hampton Park [PDF - 122 KB] has been getting lots of attention lately! Some sewer line work
was done; updates were done to the sidewalk along Hampton Rd; Gorge Soccer Association resurfaced the artificial turf field; and next up, parking lot updates! Our team will be reconfiguring the east end of the parking lot. This includes adding additonal spots to help out during busy periods, and updating the entrance at the base of Orillia. Portions of the lot will be closed during construction. Parking still available by the club house, near the ball diamonds off Tillicum and along Hampton Rd. Next up is painting of the parking lot lines and designated disabled parking stalls.
There will also be a new pathway running along the north edge of the fields to connect up with Seaton Street. The location will be where the recent sewer line replacement occurred.
Horner and Hampton Parks - Outside the Lines: Court Mural Project for We the West Basketball Festival
Saanich has been working with the We The West Basketball Festival to select two Saanich sports courts to feature a mural on. The festival is in celebration of the Olympic Basketball Qualifying Tournament being held in Victoria in late June - early July. It was determined that the Horner and Hampton Park sport courts have been selected as one of the locations. Artists will begin painting the mural on the court surface in Horner Park the week of June 21 and will complete Hampton Park the week of July 19. Watch for notices in these parks for more information. While the murals are being painted, the sports courts will be closed to the public.
Hyacinth Park - Garry Oak meadow restoration
This year our team will be undertaking a Garry Oak restoration project in the north corner of Hyacinth Park [PDF - 210 KB]. Activities will include:
- Delineating 3 sides of this Oak grove with a split rail boundary. We will leave the NW side open and provide some natural log/rock seating.
- Leave mow strips along the adjacent property, the Daffodil frontage and the asphalt pathway.
- Restoration planting this Fall within the Oak grove, including 1-10 gallon Garry Oaks.
- Large woody debris placed throughout the restoration area.
- Restoration signage.
- Air spading to reduce historic compaction.
Lochside Park sand field renovation
The sand-based grass soccer field at Lochside Park [PDF - 487 KB] is being renovated. The actual dirt base is being replaced with a new compost/soil mix, irrigation repaired and new turf laid on top. Work should be done in time for Fall soccer to return! Will improve field drainage and reduce field closures.
Rainbow Park - Engineering drain pipe work
Saanich engineering is replacing some underground infrastructure near Rainbow Park. One of the pipes goes right underneath the park! Work starts early summer and may take up to two months overall. They hope the disturbance to the park will be minimal, but heavy equipment will need to be on site and a section between the playground and sprot court will be closed off. Areas under construction will be fenced off. Please stay out of this (or any!) fenced area.
Trail Upgrades - Rudd Park
The crews will be replacing the asphalt pathways in Rudd Park [PDF - 148 KB] as they are lifting and heaving. Work is to be done in 2021.