Our Plan

The goal of the Stanley Park Hollow Tree Conservation Society (SPHTCS) is to design and implement - in conjunction with local volunteers, heritage experts, scientists, and engineers - a non-intrusive, permanent support structure for the Hollow Tree, which, once the Tree is righted, will keep the Tree safe and upright as an enduring landmark and artifact for future generations, as it has been for those past.

Subsequent to the decision of the Parks Board in April 2008 to fell the tree, the SPHTCS, and its predecessors, employed the services of a team of local experts to outline the technical details of a report, authored by the Society, on the preservation of the Hollow Tree. This report was presented to the Parks Board on in October 2008, and can be viewed at the link below:

Expert Report by the Stanley Park Hollow Tree Conservation Society

The Expert Report provides a detailed description of the investigation that has led to a simple conclusion for the Hollow Tree.

In our view, the one and only appropriate and practical plan is:

To safely retain the Stanley Park Hollow Tree,
in situ, upright and with its appearance substantially unchanged,
as a significant lasting heritage landmark in Vancouver.

This plan is appropriate because it retains both the natural and heritage value of this cherished monument.

This plan is practical because the tree is still largely sound and will be for many years to come. Its connection to the ground has weakened and this needs to be addressed by some combination of well-known conservation techniques. The original firm that advised Park Board quite correctly pointed out to Park Board that they did not have expertise as arborists or wood conservationists, and when such experts subsequently became involved, they unanimously agreed the tree can and should be saved.

The cost to do so will probably be less than the Park Board's (currently) unspecified plan to sever the tree from the earth, chop it in two, and display the resultant mess for all to see. And they have admitted there is no assurance of success!

The plan to keep the tree upright is more natural, simpler, less invasive, has essentially no risk, and afterward the tree will look very much like it does now, except that the ugly bracing Park Board recently added will be replaced with much more subtle and less obvious corrective measures.

In the event that the cost of repairs are not covered by the funds already available, we know they can be easily obtained. Already, a substantial amount of money has been pledged by donors. The cost is simply not a problem.