Emery Barnes Park was named for one of those rare individuals that apparently had no enemies; only friends and admirers. This park which bears his name is a lovely green area situated between downtown and Yaletown. There are quite a number of activities here intended for children, so it's a great place to stop when you're traveling as a family :-) read more

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It's a bright & sunny day and a beautiful day at Emery Barnes park : ) The park was officially opened on September 27, 2003 and named for Emery Barnes, a long time community activist and member of the British Columbia Legislature. Great for kids and dogs alike. Lots of playground equipment, grass to sit on, tables to sit at, a fast flowing stream, a fountain, and off leash for the dogs and puppies in your life ! Easy to get to, centrally located on Richards and Davie street. read more

Cute park in the Yaletown neighborhood of Vancouver. Lots of greenery, water fountain (for drinking and for looking at), benches, shade trees, playground with swings and climbing set and sandbox. Great spot! Emery Barnes was a Canadian football player in the early sixties before entering politics. According to the Wikipedia entry, he was one of the first black politicians in British Columbia during the 20th century and was elected Speaker of the Legislature in 1994. It's great to see that the park is named after such a great man. It was not completely clean with some litter scattered about. Disappointing. read more

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I'm really torn about this park. On one hand, it's centrally located, on the cusp between the downtown core and Yaletown (in other words, in an urban area in dire need of greenery and a park for kids to play in). It occupies a nice chunk of land: an entire city block, really. There is a terrific playground area with cool playground apparatus for the young kids to frolic on, and a fabulous water "garden" feature, too. There's an off-leash dog area that is a little dreary but, hey, I doubt the dogs mind the relative seediness of their designated play area. What I find most detrimental about this park is the ever-present presence of hobos and vagrants who hang out here (and some sleep here, too). Literally a few feet away from where kids are playing, there are hobos rambling to themselves incoherently on the grass, or sleeping beside empty bottles of booze. And there's so much trash strewn about, too. I pass this part nearly daily and not once has there not been vagrants here. The last few times, there was a guy lying on the grass, his back to the sidewalk facing Davie, and his pants were halfway down his derriere, exposing 3/4 of his butt and butt crack to the world at large. And there are often pot smoking guys here, too (and probably users of other drugs as well). Every. Single. Time. I nearly bought a condo across from this park and I'm so glad I didn't. I just wouldn't feel safe walking my dog here at night - and I sure wouldn't want my kids to do so, either. If they clean up this park, it would definitely rank 4-5 stars. Until then....not. read more

My dogs love it here! They have so many little friends there to play with Awesome off-leash fenced in dog park, with gravel and rocks. It comes complete with a human AND doggie water fountains - and benches so sit on while your dogs run wild! read more

Emery Barnes Park - Belle at the - Playgrounds Near Me - Vancouver, British Columbia

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Great park. Clean and pretty. Doesn't feel like you're in the middle of Downtown. Something for everyone. From baby swings for those less than 1y.o. to more advanced playground structures for the older kids on a padded ground, water features to play in, picnic benches to lounge on, gated dog park to separate the kids from the pets. Gets crowded when its a nice summer day and all the neighborhood kids come out to play. Menchies and Yaletown Gelato within a block or 2 away means kids can get a treat after all the playground fun. Wish they had more swings (only have 2) and rarely, but sometimes, dog owners unleash their dogs in the grass by the kids area instead of in the gated dog area. Oh, and with all the weed shops nearby, you may occassionally see/smell some users though they usually stay on the outskirts of the park and don't bother anyone. read more

Remember when it was sunny? When the sky was blue and you left your umbrella at home? When that day comes again, you should bring your lunch out to Emery Barnes park. It's got to be one of the cutest urban parks...ever. At the north end is a waterfall that trickles into a little stream. There's nice sitting areas all along it. Pretty plants, very peaceful. Choices is right across the street, so get lunch there, and then head on over! read more

Emery Barnes Park - Playgrounds Near Me - Vancouver, British Columbia

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Great park within downtown. Great for families with kids and those with dogs. Great for summer and great for winter. Having a park this size in the middle of downtown is a nice break from the tall buildings that surround it. There is a playground for kids, picnic benches and trees you can picnic under. There's also a fenced off leash dog park .. which I'm not a fan of unless it's been snowing. It's lined with gravel so it's not very fun for my dog to run around in. read more

Such a small wonder this park is. The entire length of this park is a fountain and stream combo that is as beautifully designed aesthetically as it is practically. It's like walking through an art exhibition. If I didn't see kids enjoying the water, I would have been so hesitant to put my own feet in. However, I did, and I felt like a kid. This along with the cleanliness of the park gets 5 stars, and there is a large area for dogs to run around sans leash. And of course a playground for kids. And of course it's no ordinary playground, but also a work of art. Bravissimo, Vancouver! read more

This is a great downtown park that's well maintained. It has a nice water-feature (waterfall to a stream to a fountain), plenty of grass/space, a separate (fenced) area for dogs to run round without a leash, benches & pick-nick tables, and a playground (that's isolated others aren't bothered). A fair amount of people come here to sun-bathe in the summer. Around end of business there are occasionally some teenagers at the pick-nick tables drinking & smoking (not always cigarettes), but there's a decent amount of police traffic which discourages that for a lengthy period. I've only ever seen them keeping to themselves, but the litter in that area is from them ditching beer & "energy-drink" cans under bushes. read more

Park is great for kids and people. The play ground for kids is littered with tantalizing obstacles and monkey bars. The grass field is half dead and the water running through the cool water features appear to be brown. However, for a dog park; it's quite disappointing. The dog park is a place where there is lush grass for dog to play. This place is like a prison, all the ground is covered in grayish pebbles hiding feces underneath. There is no doggie bag dispenser and the dogs that go just lay down. This place is definitely poorly designed by no dog owners. read more

I really like this park... during the day. I am little iffy about coming here during the night but during the day, my little guy loved the water fountain, the playground and the big green space. (But be aware, lots of dog owners use the green space for their dogs to go poop on and some of them don't clean up after their dogs. SHAME!!!) The city does a pretty good job of keeping the park clean and the play equipment in good working order. The park is close to Choices, Starbucks and Blenz so it's always easy to get a cup of coffee and come and enjoy the park area. read more

This park is not nice at all. The off leash is horrible. Quite often the designated off leash area is littered with people playing frisbee. If your headed there with your dog, save yourself the bother. read more

nice inner city park for DT, a quick pit stop compared to English Bay or Stanley Park. Lots of dogs here, so not really recommended to pull out a beach towel to do any tanning or picnic but lots of benches around. Lots of street parking on Seymour or Richards. Just sucks that a condo developer is planning to tear it down; Yaletown residents are taking the city to court. read more

Best park I've been to hands down! Clean, friendly people, doggy park& up to date playground equipment!...oh and a sweet river for kids and a mini waterfall thing! America should take some notes from Vancouver BC on how to build a nice park! We're just visiting Canada from Washington state and wow what a difference! read more

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Great urban park. Everybody coexists quite peacefully, but I've seen some other reviews where people are concerned about the cross section of humanity that inhabits the place. Easy to navigate if you know how it works: Playground is central and is for kids and parents. Really nice playground. Kids seem to love it. Springy surface. Keep your dogs away. Big lawn in the middle is for dogs and kids. Theoretically no dogs, but that's not reality. Better that your dogs know how to act around kids, and vice versa. E side lawn is for tanners and such. Often very attractive underdressed people of all sexes and genders in the summer - wear your mirrored shades and check it out. Watch for dog crap on the lawn if you want to tan, as idiots often don't clean up. Dog park (NW corner) is for dogs, obviously. Just a big gravel pit but dogs don't care. Lots to smell, and always other dogs to hang out with. Fun for dogs. Great place to meet people. SE corner under the pergolas is for peaceful homeless and old people who don't care who they're sharing a bench with. Relatively quiet, usually. NE corner is for furtive drinkers and people smoking weed. Quiet. Great place to have a pre roll from the nearby Weeds. W side along Seymour is where the scumbags go. They hang out at the tables with optimistic but unused chess boards on them. Avoid the area unless you can deal with it. Was a decent freestyle rapper hanging out there last summer, and that was ok. Sometimes interesting, usually annoying. Nice plants, great water feature that's very popular with small excited children. Sometimes ducks live here for a while. read more

Beautiful! The kids' games area has this soft floor that should keep them safe from falling (I guess, of course I rather won't test it). Some dogs here and there, with the owners being nice and responsible at least the couple of times I've been there. Lots of kids, unfortunately my daughter is not very social but she enjoyed seeing other kids play and trying to do the same. This mini-waterfall and mini-river is great for taking pictures. Plenty of space to sit down and relax. Small green areas here and there. So far my favorite small-to-medium-sized park! read more

Cute park to kill an hour and get some energy out. We stopped here while waiting for my husband to finish a conference at the convention center. Had no problem parking and the meters were cheap. read more

This park is clean, calm and peaceful! Whenever I go to this park, there are lots of children and dogs. They seems like they are fully enjoying the time. There are few parks in downtown, but definitely this park is the best read more

This park looked quite nice, and it does have many things for kids to play. But it seems that dog owners cannot see the signs that say "No dog allowed within 15 m playground" I had my kid play in the playground and I saw at least 10 dogs walking right beside the playground in 30 minutes. Even big unleashed dogs were running from the gated dog park into THE PLAYGROUND. The worst part was that my kid stepped on the dog poo IN THE PLAYGROUND. How can this park be that high rated. I think that there are more dogs than kids in this area, but this is not right. I am totally disgusted and won't come back here. read more

I don't really call this a park, however, it is the closest thing to in the middle of downtown. There is a fair amount of grass, mostly concrete structures. You can sit and have some quiet time, however, being downtown it has a different vibe to it. Not worth venturing out to even though it is well maintained. Hold out for the real parks. This is decent as a pit stop. read more

Great little urban park for the kids to let off steam. Several coffee shops for parents to get a cup to go and sit and relax while people watching. 100% wheelchair accessible park and new and unique play structure. read more

Nice spot for pups and a fountain, but don't mix the 2.

This park is gorgeous if only for the water feature alone! Other than Andy Livingstone Park, where you have to contend with the IV drug users everywhere, this is the only other park I've seen a miniature river in a park! I guess this little bit of green amongst the sea of glass is the city's way of maintaining their promise of green space. read more

Great urban park with a terrific off-leash dog area. The only reason it doesn't get 5 stars is because there is no grassy area within the off-leash portion. The pebble material is far cleaner and better material than many other off-leash mud pits, however. My dog just doesn't like walking on gravel and prefers grass, yea, she's a spoiled princess. It was mostly small to medium, sized dogs the times I took Agnes there as well which was far less intimidating for her than many other off-leash areas with huge dogs bowling the little ones over constantly. And, the owners were all very pleasant, polite and friendly. Other areas of the park were gorgeously manicured and landscaped with plantings, water features (not running in January, but I am sure they are lovely in spring and summer), softly padded playground area for kids, chess board tables, even a public toilet. There are also a lot of coffee shops around so you can keep warm if it's a little chilly while the dogs play. I think I took Agnes here at least 3 times a day during my weekend in Vancouver. read more

Superb little park in the city! Great to bring your kids and/or your dog. There are lots of coffee shops around, so you can grab a drink and let your little members of the family run amok. :) read more

Love this park so much, sadly a lot of people keep letting their dogs unleashed in areas they are not supposed to. I love animals, and it's understandable that they need space to run. In my case, my dog is a runner and still not neutered ( planning to do it next year since he has some medical issues ) so, he gets all cranky with some dogs. I always have him on-leash and kindly ask people to call their dogs back in case mine is reacting to them (so, BOTH animals don't get in to trouble). Sadly I had an encounter with a guy with a Labrador off-leash (out side the permitted area of course) that insist that my dog needed to "learn" when my dog clearly wanted to fight and I was trying to control him (he actually said I was doing the right thing, STILL HE DIDN'T CALL HIS DOG). He refused to move his (really sweet and well behaved) dog doesn't matter how many times I asked and explained to him that he had to respect other owners decisions and that I was trying to avoid a confrontation between them or even worse... My dog biting his!!!!!. Clearly this person feels he has the duty to force acknowledge to people about dog behavior. I accept mine it's a little territorial, and I always make sure to keep him and others dogs safe, he actually have some friends and reacts just to some dogs. Still is a BIG PROBLEM when other owners ( several times, with amazing pets) just don't listen and force themselves in to a situation you are trying to avoid. I don't mind animals OFF LEASH, I know they shouldn't be, but I don't mind... what I mind is somebody that shows this kind of behavior. The park it's amazing, sadly we will always find irresponsible owners like this man (he actually compared his well behaved dog with mine, when I was seriously questioning HIS behavior, SHAME ON HIM). So, I would say... AMAZING BEAUTIFUL place, just BEWARE of irresponsible dog owners and prepare for battle!!!! read more