Some feared its concrete tentacles would be damaged in the move, but the iconic red octopus in Cadboro-Gyro Park has landed safely on the ground after a brief journey through the air.
“We were kind of worried it would only land with four legs,” said Saanich Mayor Frank Leonard, breathing a sigh of relief.
The 30-tonne octopus — as well as the salmon, ship and Cadborosaurus play apparatuses — are being rearranged as part of a park upgrade.
Moving the octopus meant calling in Vancouver Island’s largest hydraulic crane, a 275-tonne beast based in Langford, said Tom Forest, owner of structural moving company Level Lift.
It’s the first time the octopus has been moved since it was installed in 1958, and one Saanich Parks worker said it had sunk about one metre into the sand over that time.
The octopus was settling on uneven ground, thanks to regular winter flooding in the park, Forest said.
“If left much longer, it would have eventually broken apart,” he said.
“The hollow octopus structure was very brittle. The salt water had corroded what little rebar was originally placed in the structure and the concrete ‘skin’ was very thin in places.”
Forest lives in Saanich and used to pretend to save his three daughters from the octopus.
“Who knew that 20 years later I’d be helping to save the octopus itself,” he said.
The upgrades, funded through a $675,000 provincial grant, are intended to improve drainage and increase accessibility for visitors with mobility issues.
The play area will feature new swings, a children’s zipline and a seaside-themed playground. Other improvements include a five-metre walkway, as well as a braille and sign-language panel.
The Gyro Club of Victoria donated a portion of the parkland in 1953, on the condition that it be named Cadboro-Gyro Park, said past president Rick Senkler.
Club members are pleased that the residents’ association and neighbours were consulted in the planning phase,” he said.
“So long as the park is being improved and used, that’s the legacy.”
Upgrades are expected to wrap up in late summer or early fall.
