The District of West Vancouver is deploying a squad of park rangers who will speak softly and carry a big stick.
Starting on Thursday, seven rangers will be out patrolling the busiest parks in West Van to ensure visitors are obeying the provincial health officer’s orders of physical distancing to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
The rangers, who are West Van parks and culture staff being reassigned for the pandemic, will wear high-visibility vests and carry two-metre long bamboo poles, which will be used to demonstrate the appropriate distance, not to whack people standing too close together.
Between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m., the rangers will be out at waterfront parks from Ambleside to Dundarave, Gleneagles Golf Course, Seaview Walk, Horseshoe Bay Park, Whytecliff Park, Whyte Lake Park and Lighthouse Park.
They will also be patrolling the already closed parking lots to let people who are parking illegally know that they will be ticketed and possibly towed. Over the weekend, officers handed out 74 tickets to drivers flouting the new parking restrictions posted at parks.
