North Vancouver restores Moodyville Park with 10,000 native shrubs and 1,300 trees

What is the background?

Moodyville Park sits in North Vancouver, where invasive plant species have displaced native vegetation that once supported local wildlife and stabilised stream banks. Ecological restoration North Vancouver projects like this one combine invasive removal with native replanting rather than treating clearance alone as the end goal.

What happened?

In April 2026, the federal government announced a $249,600 investment through the Natural Infrastructure Fund (NIF) for ecological restoration at Moodyville Park, with the City of North Vancouver contributing an additional $63,000. The project removes and manages invasive plant species across the park and plants approximately 10,000 native, climate-resilient shrubs alongside nearly 1,300 trees.

The restoration is designed to improve soil health, reinforce the urban forest, stabilise stream banks, and enhance habitat connectivity for migratory birds, native bats, and insect pollinators.

How did it happen?

The Natural Infrastructure Fund pairs federal money with municipal contributions, meaning the City of North Vancouver’s $63,000 commitment was required alongside the federal $249,600 rather than the project being entirely externally funded. That cost-sharing structure gives the city a direct stake in the project’s outcomes.

Nearby, Vancouver’s own Stanley Park has run a related but separate effort: Phase III of its Hemlock Looper mitigation programme, which includes tree removals in 2026 and has already seen more than 54,000 new seedlings planted through a three-year donation from Western Forest Products, showing similar native-replanting work is underway across multiple Metro Vancouver parks at once.

Why does it matter?

Removing invasive species without replanting natives often just creates an opening for a different invasive species to take hold. Committing to roughly 10,000 shrubs and 1,300 trees alongside the removal work means Moodyville Park is being actively rebuilt as habitat, not simply cleared.

Stabilising stream banks and improving soil health has knock-on benefits beyond the park boundary, since degraded urban streams affect water quality and flood resilience for the surrounding neighbourhood, not just the park itself.

What were the key results?

• $249,600 invested through the federal Natural Infrastructure Fund
• City of North Vancouver contributing a further $63,000
• Approximately 10,000 native, climate-resilient shrubs to be planted
• Nearly 1,300 trees to be planted alongside the shrubs
• Restoration targets soil health, stream bank stability, and habitat connectivity
• Benefits identified for migratory birds, native bats, and insect pollinators
• Complements separate replanting work in Vancouver’s Stanley Park (54,000+ seedlings via a three-year donation)

What happens next?

The City of North Vancouver plans to monitor shrub and tree survival rates as the restoration matures.

Federal officials said they will track how the Natural Infrastructure Fund’s cost-sharing model performs at Moodyville Park as a reference for future municipal applications.

Stanley Park’s Hemlock Looper mitigation work continues into 2027, with further restoration planting planned in spring of both years.

Metro Vancouver park managers are expected to compare results across these parallel restoration projects to guide future invasive-removal funding requests.