In order for me to make the best use of this petition to lobby the City of Coquitlam, please indicate your city of residence in the "I'm Signing Because..." comment box, especially if you are a Coquitlam Resident.

The urban forest at 3038 Guildford Way in Coquitlam, BC needs to be protected. This lot, covering approximately 2 hectares, stands out as one of the last relatively undisturbed natural areas in central Coquitlam, and hosts several distinct ecosystems. With a forest floor covered in ferns and mosses, punctuated by a high diversity of mature and habitat trees, it is a premier “pocket habitat” for several local species. 

The lot has a locally unprecedented amount of breeding bird species. Many species of birds and animals rare elsewhere in the rapidly growing central Coquitlam area can be regularly found in the lot, and it serves as a wildlife corridor - a piece of land that allows birds, bats, and other mammals to travel through the city on their way to larger forested areas. 

If you want a report on some of the species found in the lot, as well as a more detailed argument for preserving the land, see here.

The forest also offers an increasingly rare green space in the very centre of Coquitlam for residents to enjoy. In 2012, Coquitlam cut down nearly 150 large trees in Glen Park, less than a block away from this lot, to make way for a recreational space, eliminating a critical habitat for hundreds of species of wildlife and plants. I was seven when this forest was destroyed - it was a place where I, and many others, learned about birds and other animals, and is now mostly a playing field, devoid of wildlife.  We cannot let something like this happen again. 

The lot at 3038 Guildford Way is currently planned for destruction to make way for office buildings. The land is currently zoned as Single-family housing (so it must be rezoned before development), and no concrete plans or contracts have been signed, so now is our time to act.

In September of 2021, three local post-secondary students offered to do a comprehensive ecological survey of the lot (with flora and fauna surveys) complete with recommendations for future habitat restoration to further increase biodiversity on the lot. These students were refused entrance to the lot by the City of Coquitlam.

Visit save3038.com for news and events. 

Please sign this petition to urge the City of Coquitlam to keep this forest, and to allow independent ecological surveys of the lot. It is the best option for wildlife, and for residents.