Kwantlen Polytechnic’s agricultural program wants to build a “barn” at the Garden City Lands.
The barn, however, isn’t for sheltering animals, rather it is meant as “safety and security enhancements” for storage and emergency shelter space for people using the farm.
“The farm is exposed to the elements and the existing structures are designed to support plant growth so this barn would help if severe weather rolls in,” said Peter Smailes, vice-president at KPU.
KPU’s Sustainable Agriculture Farm Program uses the city-owned land – which is in the Agricultural Land Reserve – to teach students about sustainable farming.
KPU is in the process of applying for a building permit for the barn, but none has been received by the city yet.
As the barn will be smaller than a thousand square feet, it's not subject to Agricultural Land Commission (ALC) regulations, Smailes noted.
KPU currently leases about five acres of the land from the city, but this could be expanded to 20 acres in the future. The entire property is about 140 acres in size.
The city put in an application to the ALC more than a year ago to create an ecology and food production hub, a playground, boardwalks over the bog, a lookout tower and three areas for parking.
Currently, there are above-ground garden plots for community use.
The soil at the Garden City Lands is being tested as it used to be used as a firing range in the early 1900s.
