In 1982, Sien Lok embarked on a long term project to see the preservation and development of Calgary Chinatown's only green space as Sien Lok Park.

With the addition of a seniors centre to the park area in 1993, the City of Calgary agreed to expand the area of the park to include adjacent land identified along Calgary's riverfront pathway system. The Sien Lok Society then set out to design Sien Lok Park with the guiding principle summarized in its mission statement: "Sien Lok Park shall reflect the visions of all Canadian Chinese and their ancestral heritage".

The character of the Park is Chinese in its execution and much more than an attractive landscape. When completed, its proposed collection of monuments, features and interpretive inscriptions will commemorate Chinese contributions to the settlement of Canada and Alberta, to every facet of Canadian society, and to world culture.

"Sien Lok Park shall reflect the visions of all Canadian Chinese and their ancestral heritage".

The unveiling of the central monument of the Park in November 1999 marked the completion of Phase I development. "In Search of Gold Mountain" was carved by sculptor Chu Honsun, who turned 15 tonnes of granite from Hopei Province in China into a powerful, symbolic representation of the proud history of Chinese settlement in Canada. The sculpture makes an obvious statement about the integral link between China and the Chinese in Canada forged through the long history of immigration that continues today.

Phase II of the Sien Lok Park development, Sien Lok's millenium project entitled the "Wall of Names" was unveiled on October 20, 2001. The monument was created by artist Ferdinand Spina and is dedicated to the history of Chinese immigration focusing on the Chinese settlers who made Canada their home between 1886 and 1947, the period during which Canadian federal legislation described as "An Act to Restrict and Regulate Chinese Immigration in Canada" was enforced. The purpose of the "Wall of Names" is to bring recognition to Chinese pioneers who entered Canada with the determination to succeed in their new land, regardless of the challenges put before them prior to and immediately upon entry.

If you have not had a chance to see this beautiful addition to Calgary's cultural heritage, please head down to Sien Lok Park at the base of the Centre Street bridge on the South bank of the Bow River.