Assiniboine Park has gone through a major transformation the last few years.
Now, it's poised to undergo another big change.
The next phase in the conservancy's $200 million redevelopment is a showcase for the beauty of nature to be called Canada's Diversity Gardens.
"What we didn't want to do, is just rebuild something that was already there," said Hartley Richardson, chair for the Assiniboine Park Conservancy. "We wanted to create something new, something visionary; something exciting for the city, for the province."
The project will feature flowers, plants and trees in both indoor and outdoor areas.
A 64,580 square foot facility called The Leaf, will be the centrepiece.
The Leaf will have four distinct zones: a tropical biome, Mediterranean biome, a classroom and a year-round butterfly house.
The Conservancy will have to raise about $70 million to make the project a reality.
"We've done it before," said conservancy president, Margaret Redmond. "We've already put over $120 million into the park; $49 million of which came from the private sector. So we're pretty confident we can do that again."
If the funds are there, Margaret Redmond said the conservancy will be ready to have shovels in the ground by 2017, with the entire project completed two years later.
