‘Iconic’ heart of Port Moody waterfront reopens after boardwalk replacement

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Dignitaries open the new Shoreline Trail boardwalk in Port Moody, B.C. on Saturday, Sept. 13, 2025. (City of Port Moody)

Residents and dignitaries celebrated the opening of the new Shoreline Trail boardwalk in Port Moody on Saturday, Sept. 13, 2025. (CTV News)

Residents and dignitaries celebrated the opening of the new Shoreline Trail boardwalk in Port Moody on Saturday, Sept. 13, 2025. (CTV News)

Residents and dignitaries celebrated the opening of the new Shoreline Trail boardwalk in Port Moody on Saturday, Sept. 13, 2025. (CTV News)

Residents and dignitaries celebrated the opening of the new Shoreline Trail boardwalk in Port Moody on Saturday, Sept. 13, 2025. (CTV News)

Residents and dignitaries celebrated the opening of the new Shoreline Trail boardwalk in Port Moody on Saturday, Sept. 13, 2025. (CTV News)

Residents and dignitaries celebrated the opening of the new Shoreline Trail boardwalk in Port Moody on Saturday, Sept. 13, 2025. (CTV News)

Residents and dignitaries celebrated the opening of the new Shoreline Trail boardwalk in Port Moody on Saturday, Sept. 13, 2025. (CTV News)

Residents and dignitaries celebrated the opening of the new Shoreline Trail boardwalk in Port Moody on Saturday, Sept. 13, 2025. (CTV News)

Residents and dignitaries celebrated the opening of the new Shoreline Trail boardwalk in Port Moody on Saturday, Sept. 13, 2025. (CTV News)

Residents and dignitaries celebrated the opening of the new Shoreline Trail boardwalk in Port Moody on Saturday, Sept. 13, 2025. (CTV News)

Residents and dignitaries celebrated the opening of the new Shoreline Trail boardwalk in Port Moody on Saturday, Sept. 13, 2025. (CTV News)

Residents and dignitaries celebrated the opening of the new Shoreline Trail boardwalk in Port Moody on Saturday, Sept. 13, 2025. (CTV News)

For decades, Port Moody’s Shoreline Trail has delighted residents and visitors alike with its scenic views of the Burrard Inlet.

At the heart of the trail system between Rocky Point and Old Orchard parks was the boardwalk.

“It was beautiful, but sometimes you had to put on snorkeling gear to see it because it was underwater,” quipped Port Moody–Burquitlam MLA Rick Glumac at a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Saturday for the new and improved Shoreline Trail boardwalk.

After a two-year closure and nearly $10 million worth of construction work, the boardwalk reopened to the public after the ceremony Saturday morning.

Among the improvements are wider walkways with gentler grades to improve accessibility, safety railings, and a new viewing platform.

The boardwalk is also elevated to improve its resilience in the face of rising sea levels and severe storms caused by climate change.

The improvements got rave reviews from longtime resident Sharon McRae, who said her “heart was fluttering” as she made her way to the ceremony.

“It’s fabulous,” McRae said. “It’s safe for seniors, it’s good for dogs, it’s good for tourists. It’s lovely, and it was worth the wait.”

Both Glumac and Mayor Meghan Lahti described the old boardwalk as “iconic.”

Rod MacVicar, a member of the Burrard Inlet Marine Enhancement Society’s board of directors, went a step further.

“This is what should’ve been done years ago,” he said. “Everybody realized that the greatest tourist attraction in Vancouver is the Stanley Park walk, the seawall, and this, I think, will rival it.”

MacVicar described the salt marsh and mud flats found under and around the boardwalk at the eastern end of the Port Moody Arm of the Burrard Inlet as “absolutely unique.”

“There’s very little salt marsh left in the harbour, and this is a wonderful platform to have access to it,” he said.

Ruth Foster, another of the society’s directors, touted the viewing platform’s utility as a site for environmental education, as well as its beauty as a backdrop for wedding photos.

The viewing platform is home to a new house post carved by səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh Nation) artists Damian George and his nephew Jonas Jones.

The work, titled Sí7la – Grandmother, is part of In the Presence of Ancestors, a project that places house posts around the land now known as Port Moody as a way of reminding the community of “our shared responsibility for protecting the Burrard Inlet.”

A total of five posts, carved by artists from the səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh), kʷikʷəƛ̓əm (Kwikwetlem), xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), q̓ic̓əy (Katzie), and Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish) nations, are being erected along the Shoreline Trail this year and next.

Lahti praised Tasha Faye Evans, the Indigenous artist and Port Moody resident who has spearheaded the In the Presence of Ancestors project.

The mayor said Saturday was a “wonderful day” for the community, the culmination of a project that faced some unexpected and costly challenges.

“The budget, originally, was around $6 million, and then there were some issues that came up in terms of supply,” Lahti said. “We had challenges with the soil stability, so what we thought we needed to pile into about 20 feet ended up being 50 feet. It created a lot more cost and time to complete the project.”

The city’s contribution remained at around $6 million, thanks to funding from the federal and provincial governments, which provided $495,000 and $3.05 million, respectively.

“This is a really integral part of Port Moody,” Lahti said. “It’s really the heart of our community.”