The 7.5 kilometre Green Necklace is a circle and there are no fences or gates, so you can literally start at any point, staying on the greenway for as much or as little as you like. Amenities on the Green Necklace include lighting, benches, garbage cans, recycling, drinking fountains, dog waste bins, and wayfinding signs. Smoking is not allowed.
Since the Green Necklace is a multi-use path, watch the signage to be sure you're in the correct part of the shared pathway whether you're walking, rolling, or riding. And look out for little people, dogs, skateboards and others painted on the path – part of the Whatever the Weather fun public art!
Ready to explore the Green Necklace? We've described the loop below, starting at the foot of Grand Boulevard and exploring in a counter-clockwise direction.
Eastern Section | foot of Grand Boulevard to the top of the Boulevard
- Starting from the southwest corner of Grand Boulevard (at Keith), Green Necklace options include either a winding path up the centre of the Boulevard or two straight paths on either side.
- As you walk up the Boulevard, enjoy the many species of trees and amazing blooming rhododendrons (April-May). If you have some time, stop to play chess or checkers on our large game board (between 13th & 15th).
- Notice the lighting lining the centre path? The light fixtures were carefully chosen to compliment the historic character of the both the park and the neighbourhood, while providing sufficient light without causing "light pollution".
- Continuing up the greenway, look for the At Home public art close to the centre path (at 15th Street), and the Pollinator Garden (between 17th and 18th Streets).
Northern Section | top of Grand Boulevard to 21st & Jones
- Leaving the Boulevard, the Green Necklace goes along 19th Street where traffic whizzes past, before curving onto Grand Boulevard (the roadway, not the park!) and entering the quietest part of the pathway.
- Check the peekaboo views of the City as you go along the forested greenway bordering Greenwood Park. If you look hard through the trees you'll spy vehicles zooming past on Highway 1, on the Cut.
- After emerging from the park, you'll be on 23rd Street in a residential neighbourhood.
- Continue along 23rd Street by the Lawn Bowling club – stop to watch a game and check out the great views of downtown Vancouver.
- Take 23rd to St Georges, where you'll cross and turn left before zigzagging past the Harry Jerome Community Recreation Centre site onto 21st Street.
- Cross Lonsdale and continue along 21st Street, through residential neighbourhoods.
- Soon after crossing Chesterfield, you'll descend into Wagg Creek Park and continue through the ravine before exiting onto the south side of 21st and crossing Jones.
Western Section | Jones from 21st to Keith
- After crossing Jones, the Green Necklace runs along sports fields, Mahon Park, and the Jones Avenue trailhead.
- At the southern edge of Mahon Park, cross Jones at 16th, and enjoy the street trees as you complete the shortest section of the Green Necklace before crossing busy Keith Road.
Southern Section | Jones to foot of Grand Boulevard
- Curve away from the main road towards Queen Mary Elementary school.
- Cross Chesterfield by the roundabout.
- A few steps takes you to Victoria Park West, where you can go left or right onto along the Green Necklace pathways, which edge the park.
- Cross Lonsdale to Victoria Park East, which also has two pathway options. Look for the cenotaph mid-park, where Remembrance Day ceremonies are held on the 11th of November.
- The two paths rejoin at St Georges, taking you through green space in the centre of Keith Road as traffic goes by in each direction.
- At St Andrews, you'll cross to the north side of Keith Road as the Green Necklace switches to more of a sidewalk feel.
- After less than a kilometre, you'll be at the foot of Grand Boulevard – back to our starting point!
Project Timeline
The Green Necklace was opened in October of 2018. Portions of the pathway were built gradually over the years, as shown below.
- 2005 – Victoria Park (southern section)
- 2014 – Jones and Mahon Park (western section)
- 2016 – East Keith and Grand Boulevard (southern and eastern sections)
- 2017 – West 21st Street, Jones to Lonsdale (northern section)
- 2018 – East 23rd, Lonsdale to Grand Boulevard (northern section)
Design Principles
The Green Necklace loop was created to provide a universally accessible, multi-use path with the following considerations:
- Promote safe and respectful use
Provide a safe and universally accessible multi-use path for pedestrians, cyclists, people with wheeled mobility aides, and all modes of active transportation.
- Connect places
Safely and efficiently connect key destinations along this diverse route that provides an engaging way to discover City parks, community centres, transportation junctions, and commercial hubs.
- Serve and attract different users
Balance pedestrian use with cycling needs to promote and accommodate all intended uses as viable forms of active transportation and all ages and abilities.
- Enhance streets along the way
Create a positive and unique urban trail user experience in the City that enhances a richer understanding of the neighbourhoods along the way, functioning as both as a neighbourhood corridor and as an outdoor recreational facility.
- Adapt to neighbourhood character
With public input, develop a design integrated with the properties along the route, taking advantage of existing infrastructure, that can respond to future changes in the community.
Sustainability
By providing alternative transportation options with routes between the Lonsdale central business district, major parks, and open spaces, the Green Necklace contributes to reducing automobile trips and traffic congestion thereby improving air quality and reducing community greenhouse gas emissions. The greenway aligns with the Bicycle Master Plan, existing transit routes, and the City’s planned greenway system.
The Green Necklace also provides a network of habitat linkages for urban wildlife between existing green spaces with street trees and naturalized landscapes. Along the Green Necklace route, bioswales and rain gardens expose natural processes that are typically covered over in the urban environment.
The Green Necklace enhances the social sustainability of the City by encouraging community interaction, fitness, and safety, as well as easy access to parks, open spaces, and streets. The Green Necklace enhances the walk-ability and in turn, the livability of the City.
The idea for the Green Necklace began over 100 years ago. Edward Mahon, a central figure in the North Vancouver Land and Improvement Company, pictured a "Grand Boulevard" encircling the new city. This idea was influenced by the Garden City and City Beautiful planning movements of the late 1800s – a response to the deteriorating conditions of industrial cities in Europe.
Mahon said:
"Completion of this great public way, with the supporting parks and gardens, will perpetuate health areas and pleasure grounds within a short distance of every resident of the present City of North Vancouver, and our municipality will have the distinction of possessing the most spacious boulevard contained within the limits of any city in the world – a great artificial lung, encompassing the central town, breathing, pressing, forcing into it health and vitality... This recognition of the connection between people’s health and our environment is still as relevant today as it was when the City first began."
This connection between people’s health and our environment is as relevant today as it was during the early stages of our City.