Artificial turf replacing grass in parts of Downtown Vancouver

VANCOUVER(NEWS1130)-  If you’ve ever tried to keep a lawn green, you know it isn’t easy.

It appears the people responsible for several buildings in Downtown Vancouver have given-up on old fashioned water, fertilizer and TLC and instead are switching to artificial turf.

The stuff looks so real, lush and green along the sidewalks people walking or driving by usually can’t tell the difference.

That’s until you reach down and touch it and realize it’s artificial – something more likely to be seen in places like Phoenix or Las Vegas not in our “greenest city.”

Local landscaper James Oakes has seen metres of it installed on West Cordova and Bute Streets but understands why those areas in the shadows of skyscrapers can’t grow the real stuff.

“It’s not suited for those areas because of erosion and problems watering these lawns. As a matter of fact, the artificial turf, from what I’ve seen, is not a bad idea.”

However, Oakes says his first reaction was ‘Oh my God, it’s an awful idea’ because it’s not the real thing. It’s not real turf.

He says short-term, artificial turf may make things more presentable but long-term solutions can include shade plants and mosses, along with paving stones.

Oakes also likes what’s happening in the West End where people are taking muddy or rough grass areas and turning them into community gardens.

“It gives the property owners and people living in the neighbourhood a kind of buy-in with the outdoor space,” he says.

A local real estate agent says he knows of a building which tried natural turf twice but it failed to grow because of drainage issues in the winter.

Reaction to our story on social media has been interesting.

One person writes “make a few holes and play mini-golf.”

Another says “the dog pee is so bad outside one building you can smell it walking by.”