Vancouver Park Board to charge more for parking, programs and facilities under ‘Zero Means Zero’ budget

Vancouver Park Board commissioners approved their 2026 operating and capital budget requests Monday night, targeting approximately $11 million in revenue increases and one-time transfers to meet city council’s directive of a zero-per-cent property tax increase.

The total park board operating budget approved at Monday’s meeting is roughly $1.2 million larger than last year’s, a rise the board’s staff report attributes to “fixed cost increases and investment in operating impacts of capital and customer experience.”

The nearly $192 million operating budget—up from $190.7 million last year—will nevertheless cost payers of property taxes about $6.3 million less in 2026 than the park board cost in 2025.

That’s because the board plans to raise its revenues by more than $7.5 million, to almost $97 million next year, compared to roughly $89.4 million this year.

More than half of the increase—$4.1 million—is slated to come from higher parking revenue.

The huge jump, which is 32.3 per cent more than the park board planned to take in from parking fees in 2025, is projected based on “realignment of budgets to historical trends,” new paid parking pilots at community centres, Langara Golf Course and Van Dusen Botanical Garden, and fee increases “to help cover fixed costs and better alignment with market rates,” according to staff.

Fees for programs and access to park board facilities will also be going up, with a total of $1.9 million in increased revenue projected in the operating budget.

The bulk of that total, some $1.4 million, is expected to come from the city’s golf courses, where increases in fees per round and reductions in seasonal discount rates are planned.

Most fees for programs and facilities access will be increasing by two to five per cent, according to the staff report park board commissioners approved Monday. The document contains a detailed breakdown of the specific fee increases that are planned.

Some of those increases will not take effect after city councillors approved an amendment to the overall budget on Tuesday aimed at keeping “community centre recreation admission and passes, lessons, programs and permits at a zero-per-cent increase.”

The amendment calls for staff to reallocate $800,000 “from within the city’s overall existing budget” to cover those costs. It does not specify where the funds should come from, though city staff are asked to report back on their plans.

The staff report on the park board budget shows additional revenue increases in the “rental, lease, other” category, as well as in “cost recoveries and donations.”

“Revenue budgets always come with an element of risk as it is dependent on market pressures, the economy and consumer behaviour,” the budget document reads.

“Through consultation with subject matter experts and historical trend analysis, staff believe these revenue budgets are achievable.”

After accounting for the higher expenditures, the net increase in revenue from the various fee increases listed above works out to nearly $6.4 million.

To achieve the $11 million target set under Mayor Ken Sim’s “Zero Means Zero” budget motion, the park board also lists three “investments” it has incorporated into its 2026 operating budget plan.

A total of $1.4 million is classified as “ongoing investments,” with $1.1 million of that total related to “investment in operating impacts of capital projects” and the rest coming from “investment in park rangers and park maintenance to support alcohol on beaches.”

Another $2.5 million is described as a “one-time investment to help enhance overall visitor experience throughout (the) park board system” and is funded through “a carry-forward of the 2025 park board budget surplus.”

City councillors were scheduled to vote on Vancouver’s $2.3-billion operating budget on Tuesday.