At the foot of the staircase leading the Quay, there has long been a lonely brick-paved square that always seemed to attract ne’er-do-wells. This gap between the new Sally Ann and The Keg has been simply a place one passes through.
If you’ve been through the area more recently, you’ve probably noticed construction in the square, and a big sign announcing a pending ‘Hyack Square’ revitalization in the space. I always wondered just what was coming there, and today I found out (PDF link): it’s not just beautification but building the …

A reliable source informs me that a property owner in the Connaught Heights area would like to see an area of land used as a community garden of sorts. In true Royal City style, this currently anonymous owner is offering the space for interested gardeners, free of charge.
If you are one of the many New Westminsterites out there hankering to till the soil and raise your own veggies, but you don’t have a plot to plant in, contact us and we will pass on the info!
Simply leave a comment on …

The Garden Nerd series will look at gardening issues in New Westminster. Suggestions for topics, guest submissions, and questions are all welcome. We’ll try and address it all! You can find other posts, as they are added, by clicking here.
Today’s post is written by Jennifer Heron, aka The Bug Lady. After graduating from the University of British Columbia’s biology department, Jennifer’s affinity for insect and bugs lead her to pursue a graduate degree in entomology from the UBC department of Zoology. She is also the operator of The Bug Lab, here in New Westminster, and is …

The Garden Nerd series will look at gardening issues in New Westminster. Suggestions for topics, guest submissions, and questions are all welcome. We’ll try and address it all! You can find other posts, as they are added, by clicking here. Today’s post is written by regular contributor Jen Arbo. 
About four months ago, Ross and I murdered a houseplant through neglect, although truth be told the blame should really be placed on me for in our house, it is I who reigns as House Plant Caregiver while Ross rules the outside …

So, we all know that any new west celebration of bc’s 150th birthday is sure to revere our fair city’s stories past. But as I sit here on my iPhone typing out this post with my thumbs, I wonder what we’ll do to connect this historical celebration with our brave new future. Live tweeting the parties and events? Helping to plan small group events by blog and wiki? What about HistoryCamp? Could we stream the procedings live on the Internet or get famous locals like jordie morneau (MLB MVP baseball …

In a press release today, the City of New Westminster announced it has received a $200,000 grant from the federal government towards the city’s planned 150th anniversary celebrations this year. The money will offset the $374,000 budget council approved earlier this year to plan and promote the events.
In the media release, 150th Celebrations Task Force Chair Rick Page is quoted saying, “We’ve been told that we received the maximum grant available under this program. That’s entirely appropriate given our status as the oldest city in Western Canada and the first …

We’re kicking off a new series here at Tenth to the Fraser. The Garden Nerd series will look at gardening issues in New Westminster. Suggestions for topics, guest submissions, and questions are all welcome. We’ll try and address it all!  You can find other posts, as they are added, by clicking here. Today’s post is written by Ross Arbo, CHT. Ross spent 14 years as a landscaper on Vancouver’s West Side. He also happens to be married to Jen Arbo, a regular contributor, and occasionally authors posts over at the Arbolog.  
That Time of …

The Urban Wildlife Series takes a look at wildlife we share our city with. This is the fourth in a series. You can view the others, as they are added, by clicking here.
 When we moved in here, I was really excited as being on the ground floor meant I could install a little water feature on our patio and I had a vision of a miniature fish pond – apartment style of course, but a fish pond nonetheless – with burbling water and maybe some potted bamboo and perhaps a …

This is a guest post by New West resident Paul Goodrick. You can find him on Twitter as @duckbeaver and on his blog at duckbeaver.com. 
Since moving to New Westminster over a year ago, I’ve really been keen on becoming more active in the community but it always seemed one thing or another confounded my attempts. So when a notice showed up on my building’s door announcing an upcoming meeting for the New Westminster Downtown Residents Association, I took the plunge.
Showing up just as things were getting set up, I was …