Vancouver closes roller slide at Yaletown playground, citing noise complaints

The racket of the rolling slide in a Yaletown neighbourhood playground is causing some residents to file noise complaints, according to the Vancouver Park Board.

As a result of what it described as a misuse of equipment, the city has dismantled the slide, which has rollers on which children descend, and fenced it off until it could be replaced. The rest of the playground's facilities remain open.

Steel fencing now surrounds the space where the roller slide had been at sθәqәlxenәm ts'exwts'áxwi7 park, also known as Rainbow Park in downtown Vancouver.

A roller slide has metal cylinders similar to a baggage conveyor at an airport, but on a downward incline. 

The city said they took the slide down after residents complained about the steely noise it was creating.

Ian Stewart, a spokesperson for the Vancouver Park Board, said the closure was necessary because some people were going up the slide, instead of sliding down as intended. 

"They run up, they're actually punching those rollers through the slide and dislodging them and as they break and kind of get misaligned — it actually creates quite a lot of noise," Stewart said.

He added the complaints claimed the clangs were imposing, even in a downtown urban area. The park board said the replacement will take sound and accessibility into account.

"[The closure of the slide] is not fair," said Mohammed, who was passing by the park. "I work just around here and it's not that noisy."

Lynn Tai, who lives nearby and has taken her child to play in the park, said the slide can get noisy and that it also has other problems.

"Sometimes your clothes get stuck inside [the slide], so it's probably a good decision to take it down," she said. 

News of the slide's dismantling garnered strong reactions on Twitter, with many questioning how its racket compared to other urban noises in downtown Vancouver. 

The park board did not give a timeline for when the slide will be replaced.