New playgrounds

A new children's play area is being constructed next to the existing one at Brentwood Park Elementary School.  Although it may not look any different from other play areas at the moment, this one is particularly special.  The Brentwood Elementary School Parent Advisory Council raised funds to build a barrier-free playground that will allow children with disabilities to enjoy themselves when outside for recess or lunch.

Speaking of new play areas, I recently noticed that a brand new play area has been built at the southeast corner of Beecher Park.

Vantage foundation being set

The Vantage Project by Embassy Development Corporation at 2085 Rosser Ave is advancing as the excavation has been completed.  As the photograph shows (taken from overhead SkyTrain), the foundation for the units slated to front Lougheed Hwy has been laid and part of the structure is beginning to take shape.  The area in the background will see the foundation and underground parking take form over the summer.  Metrotown's skyline can be seen in the far distance.

INFO: Brentwood Station First and Last Trains

McDonald's Renovating

If you're craving a McDonald's breakfast on your way to catch the train in the morning, you're going to have to make new plans for your fix as the McDonald's located at Brentwood Mall is currently boarded up and  renovations are underway.  My guess is that because it opens earlier and closes later than mall hours, they want to change the layout including the entrance/exit location.  The area in front of the counter was very narrow and crowded outside mall hours when the accordion doors were closed to prevent access to the closed mall.

Steve Nash Fitness World about to open

The new Steve Nash Fitness World is nearing its grand opening on June 25.  The new facility is located in the building that was previously home to an Office Depot and is situated next to Tim Hortons and Boston Pizza at 4199 Lougheed Hwy.

Second thought needed on celebration squares?

Two days ago, a great season came to a sad conclusion for Canucks fans like me.  The worst part wasn't the fact that the Canucks lost game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final for the 3rd time in it's history.  The day after game 7, now that the season is over, the silver lining for the Canucks is that they have as good a chance as any team to win the Cup in 2012 as all teams are at point zero again.

The saddest thing for me was the destruction caused by so-called Canucks fans that began destroying the city that hosted their hockey parties throughout the playoffs.  The madness that transpired after the Canucks' loss has to be on the minds of city planners that have touted the building of public squares in town centres around Burnaby to celebrate special events.   Perhaps the scale of the gatherings need to be reduced to allow for better crowd control as one possible solution.

Whatever the solution, we can expect much debate and discussion over the building of the future celebration square at Brentwood Station.

Another day to gather and celebrate on the street

The crowds began to gather at Hamilton and Georgia from late morning as people began to stake out their spots to watch game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final. By 3pm, the place quickly started to fill up and the excitement grew.

I snapped the following shots of the crowd outside CBC studios before heading home to watch the game:

       

Back at Brentwood Station, I saw a lineup for tickets forming as large numbers of fans prepared to head downtown to join the celebration.  It's the first time I've seen people having to line up for tickets at this station.

Unfortunately (or fortunately depending on how you see it) we have to wait until game 7 on Wednesday to see if the Canucks can win the Stanley Cup for the first time ever.  The anxiety continues...