Stanley Park's famous hollow tree isn't much to look at these days.
Wrapped in cables, propped up by poles and fenced off to the public, the tree barely rates a glance from visiting tourists.
Bruce MacDonald is part of the Stanley Park Hollow Tree Conservation Society. He recalls a time when the giant cedar was one of the most photographed images in Vancouver.
"Anyone who grows up in Vancouver knows and loves the hollow tree," he says.
It's this appreciation for the tree that's compelling him to save it.
"It's absolutely worth millions of dollars as part of the tourism industry," he says.
But what to do with the 800-year-old icon has been a troubling question. A plan to prop it up with outside supports fell flat some time ago. And until March of last year it was coming down.
"Our intent is to lie it down, split it in two and let people walk through it," Vancouver Park Board's Jim Lowden told CTV News last year.
But Bruce and www.savethehollowtree.com have been quietly raising private donations. They now have more than $50,000. Their new plan would see the tree propped up without the use of public money.
"I believe the hollow tree will be resurrected on Monday night," says Park Board commissioner Ian Robertson.
The park board is expected to go ahead with the plan at a meeting next week, and construction could start as early as this spring.
"If properly taken care of it should last forever," says Bruce.
With a report from CTV British Columbia's Brent Gilbert
