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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCSD-17-053 - Neighbourhood Placemaking Challenge Grant REPORT TO: Community & Infrastructure Services Committee DATE OF MEETING: June 12, 2017 SUBMITTED BY: Michael May,Deputy CAO, 519-741-2200 x 7079 PREPARED BY: Darren Kropf, Neighbourhood Development Office Associate, 519-741-2200 x 7083 WARD(S) INVOLVED: All DATE OF REPORT: June 1, 2017 REPORT NO.: CSD-17-053 SUBJECT: Neighbourhood Placemaking Challenge ___________________________________________________________________ RECOMMENDATION: That the annual Neighbourhood Placemaking Challenge, as outlined in CSD-17- 053, be approved. BACKGROUND: Love My Hood – Kitchener’s first Neighbourhood Strategy – was approved by Kitchener City Council on February 27, 2017, through report CSD-17-008. Residents take the lead, and the city supports them along the way, in three areas of focus: Great Places, Connected People and Working Together. Through a massive community engagement process, 5,651 residents provided input in 3,942 hours of conversation. They identified the need for more opportunities and support for placemaking projects they can take the lead on in their neighbourhood. Responding to this need is action item #3 in Love My Hood, which includes: Hosting an annual placemaking challenge Offering grants to complete temporary or permanent improvements to a public place Using the challenge to educate the community about placemaking and inspire more residents to get involved. In August, 2016, staff hosted a Placemaking Challenge as part of the Love My Hood engagement campaign. Despite a short-time frame to promote the Challenge, staff received twelve applications. Nine applications were approved, according to the selection criteria, and awarded up to $1000 each. These projects were located in six different wards: “Fairyposa” enchanted forest in Shantz Park (Ward 1) *** This information is available in accessible formats upon request. *** Please call 519-741-2345 or TTY 1-866-969-9994 for assistance. 8 - 1 Pop-up lawn games and treats on unused lawn area off Vanier Drive (Ward 3) “Gaga-ball” court and tree planting on Marl Meadow Court (Ward 4) Pop-up historical map workshop in Lower Doon Park (Ward 4) Mural on edible forest heights storage shed at Forest Heights Community Centre (Ward 7) Pop-up beach party and live music in Victoria Park (Ward 9) Pollinator garden on the Iron Horse Trail (Ward 9) Soccer tournament, live music and food truck on Hartwood Court (Ward 10) Community chalkboard and lemonade stand on the Spur Line Trail (Ward 10) In an evaluation survey after the Challenge was complete, all nine groups reported satisfaction with the Challenge and would apply if the Challenge is offered again. REPORT: The Love My Hood project team discussed the establishment of a Neighbourhood Placemaking Challenge in depth. Based on research and best practices in other cities gathered by a subcommittee of residents and staff, the project team determined there are several principles that are critical to effective neighbourhood placemaking: Successful placemaking has residents identifying opportunities in their neighbourhood and driving the process forward. City staff plays an important role in supporting residents and helping them navigate city hall. Some residents need a specific, time-bound push to get started, such as a financial incentive and grant deadline. Placemaking can happen year-round, in all seasons of the year. Varying levels of grants can encourage people to get involved according to the time and energy they have to provide. Small grants are especially valuable for people just starting out in placemaking and not ready to commit to a major project. Definition Neighbourhood placemaking is defined as a process that brings a neighbourhood to life by turning everyday spaces into destinations and gathering places that people want to spend time in. Neighbourhood placemaking is led and implemented by residents, with city staff supporting them as needed. Purpose The primary purpose of the Neighbourhood Placemaking Challenge is to encourage more people – of all ages and backgrounds – to spend time in neighbourhood places, strengthen relationships between neighbours and be positively engaged in their neighbourhood. Additional benefits for Kitchener’s neighbourhoods include: Greater knowledge of and participation in placemaking by residents Renew or revitalize neighbourhood public places 8 - 2 Strengthen pride in and sense of influence on their neighbourhood by residents Improve safety through more people using public places Increased resident engagement in their neighbourhood Build capacity for long-term change by neighbours working together Grant amounts Several sizes of grants are proposed, in order to encourage both temporary and permanent placemaking of varying levels of size and scope. In addition, varying levels of grants encourage a greater diversity of neighbourhoods to participate, according to the time and energy they have to contribute to a project in their neighbourhood. Some examples of the types of projects expected are provided, though staff expects residents to come up with many creative ideas not on this list. Grant names Grant# of grants Type of Examples amountavailableprojects annually Up to 1 Permanent Large Shade structure $20,000 Intersection mural Public art EconomicUp to 1 Permanent Identity signage development $10,000 Seating area Painted crosswalk Artifacts MediumUp to 3 Permanent Edible forest $6,000 Mural Ping pong table Up to 1 Temporary/pop- Health Outdoor exercise $2,000up or permanent equipment/group fitness class Pop-up farmers market Bicycle fix-it station Sustainability Up to 1 Temporary/pop- Rainwater $2,000up or permanent harvesting/garden Pet waste composter SmallUp to 8 Temporary/pop- Information boards $1,000up or permanent Pop-up lemonade stand Pop-up conversion of parking spot into mini-park TotalUp to 15 $60,000 8 - 3 How the grant works To qualify for this grant, residents must host their placemaking activities on the designated Neighbourhood Placemaking Challenge Days. An entire weekend will be selected, so residents can choose the exact timing on that weekend that best fits their project and/or neighbourhood. For larger, permanent projects, construction and installation can occur in advance of the Challenge Days, but the “official opening” or celebration must occur on the Challenge Days. If qualified applications do not exist in a particular grant category, those funds can be redistributed to qualified applications in other grant categories, at the discretion of the selection committee. The Love My Hood project team advised staff to change the dates of the Neighbourhood Placemaking Challenge annually, to encourage placemaking in all seasons of the year. They also encouraged staff to have two rounds of applications, recognizing that grants of a higher amount require more advance planning than those of lower amounts. Two rounds of applications also allow residents to re-apply in the second round of applications, if they did not receive funding in the first round. PlacemakingPromotingRound 1 Applications Round 2 Applications due Challengethedue (Large, Economic (Health, Sustainability and Days ChallengeDevelopment and Small grants) Medium grants) July – September 18, 2017 April 9, 2018 July 28-30, 2018September 2017 SeptemberJuly - September 24, 2018 May 27, 2019 September 27-29, 2019 2018 Selection criteria The Neighbourhood Placemaking Challenge is an open competition. Approved applications will best meet the following selection criteria: Placemaking principles - creates a gathering place, multi-use, accessible, creativity Achievable plan - resident support, project plan, budget, safety & risk Further definitions of these selection criteria are described in Appendix A. Also, three placemaking grants have been dedicated to achieving additional city objectives, in addition to Love My Hood objectives. Economic development grant This grant is intended to support City of Kitchener economic development goals. It encourages new partnerships between residents and businesses in their 8 - 4 neighbourhoods, by providing a grant to projects that build pride in and improve a city- owned asset that is within 500 m of a business or retail centre. This grant is only available to neighbourhoods outside of the Downtown Community Improvement Plan boundary. Health & Sustainability grants These grants are intended to support City of Kitchener planning goals. The Health grantsupports projects that address at least two of the following: physical activity, sun safety/shade, active transportation (walking, cycling, etc.), access to fresh and healthy food, mental health, walkable and complete communities, accessible connections between places and people, and built environments that improve quality of life, social cohesion and well-being. The Sustainability grant supports projects that address at least two of the following: water quality, water conservation, energy conservation, energy regeneration or renewable energy, air quality, waste reduction and management, reuse of materials, active transportation, actions that help prevent or adapt to climate change, carbon emissions reductions, and actions that encourage sustainability into our community culture. Selection committee The selection committee will consist of equal representation between residents/volunteers and city staff. Staff is proposing a committee of ten, with one representative from the following groups: Residents/VolunteersStaff Safe & Healthy Advisory Committee Neighbourhood Development Office Economic Development Advisory Community Centres Committee Arts & Culture Advisory Committee Economic Development Kitchener Youth Action Council Planning Mayor’s Advisory Council for Kitchener’s Operations – Environmental Services Seniors(Parks & Trails) Ensuring equitable access to these grants To ensure multiple neighbourhoods in the city benefit from these grants, preference will be given to awarding at least one grant for each of the city’s 10 wards, provided qualified applications exist. Further, the same group cannot receive the large grant two years in a row. Staff is aware that neighbourhoods have varying levels of capacity and ability to complete placemaking projects. The small grants of $1,000 have intentionally be chosen to encourage neighbourhoods with less capacity to get involved, without having to commit to a major project. It is expected that completing a smaller placemaking 8 - 5 project will help strengthen capacity within a neighbourhood, perhaps leading them to apply for larger grants in future years. City staff will promote the grants in all 10 wards, and encourage applications from a variety of formal and informal neighbourhood groups. Specifically, community centre and neighbourhood liaison staff will be actively promoting this grant opportunity and providing guidance and assistance where appropriate. Councillors are encouraged to promote the grant to their constituents as well. Residents in the 2016 Placemaking Challenge strongly advised the city to provide the cash grants in advance of the project being completed. This allows groups who cannot afford to purchase supplies and materials in advance to participate. Staff is recommending that the full cash value of the grant be provided in advance for the Health, Sustainability and Small grants. Up to $5,000 of the Large, Economic Development and Medium grants can be provided in advance, with additional reporting milestones set up to secure the remaining funds. All groups will be required to submit financial accounting and proof of purchases upon completion of the placemaking project, and to return any unused portions of the grant. Evaluation All approved applicants will be required to complete a survey reporting on their experience and whether their projects achieved the intended goals of this placemaking grant. Staff will use this information and additional evaluative criteria to report back to Council after two years of the Neighbourhood Placemaking Challenge have been completed, to determine if the grant should continue and/or whether changes can be made to improve the grant program. ALIGNMENT WITH CITY OF KITCHENER STRATEGIC PLAN: Strategic Priority: Safe & Thriving Neighbourhoods Strategy: 3.1 Give citizens the tools and opportunities to play an active leadership role in creating great neighbourhoods and fostering a stronger sense of community belonging. Strategic Action: #NB1 Love My Hood FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS: No new money is being requested from Council. Funding for two years of the Neighbourhood Placemaking Challenge will be provided by three sources, all of which has been previously approved by Council: Funding source AmountNotes Neighbourhood $48,000 Approved in CSD-17-008 Development Reserve Economic$10,000 As part of the 2017 Budget, Council 8 - 6 approved an allocation of $10,000 from Development Reserve Fundthe Economic Development Reserve, to be used in 2017, to support the Neighbourhood Placemaking Challenge. As the Challenge is now scheduled for 2018, any expenses not incurred in 2017 will be transferred within the Reserve to 2018. $2,000 This funding is dedicated to the Health & Planning Division Capital Account Sustainability grants. (Urban Design Improvements – Neighbourhood Placemaking) COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT: Through a massive community engagement campaign for the creation of Love My Hood, 5,651 residents provided input in 3,942 hours of conversation. Staff heard from a diversity of residents, such as neighbourhood associations, schools, faith communities, cultural clubs, sports team, youth and seniors groups. Staff engaged residents at parks, pools, splash pads, bus stations, soccer games, events and shopping centres all across the city. INFORM – This report has been posted to the City’s website with the agenda in advance of the council / committee meeting. CONSULT – In addition to consultation for Love My Hood, the draft guidelines were reviewed by the Research & Best Practices subcommittee of the Love My Hood project team, including Brooke Robinson, Melissa Bowman, Laura McBride and Mike Farwell. COLLABORATE – In 2016, a Placemaking Challenge was hosted as part of the community engagement process for Love My Hood. It was intended to help staff learn the types of placemaking projects that residents are interested in completing, as well as how to make it easy for residents to complete their projects and receive any necessary approvals from various city departments. Participation by residents included: 9 residents were the lead contact on projects. The majority of these groups were informal groups of residents, along with a couple neighbourhood associations. 45 volunteers were involved in hosting the placemaking projects in their neighbourhood. 310 residents attended and participated in these placemaking projects. PREVIOUS CONSIDERATION OF THIS MATTER: Council approval of the Neighbourhood Strategy, CSD-17-008, included action item #3, directing staff to create an annual Neighbourhood Placemaking Challenge grant. ACKNOWLEDGED BY: Michael May 8 - 7 APPENDICES: Appendix A – Neighbourhood Placemaking Challenge 8 - 8 Appendix A 1.Purpose of this grant The primary purpose of the Neighbourhood Placemaking Challenge is to encourage more people of all ages and backgrounds to spend time in neighbourhood places, strengthen relationships between neighbours and be positively engaged in their neighbourhood. neighbourhoods include: Greater knowledge of and participation in placemaking by residents Renew or revitalize neighbourhood public places Strengthen pride in and sense of influence on their neighbourhood by residents Improve safety through more people using public places Increased resident engagement in their neighbourhood Build capacity for long-term change by neighbours working together 2.Definition of placemaking Placemaking brings a neighbourhood to life by turning everyday spaces into destinations and gathering places that people want to spend time in. 3.The grant amounts Several sizes of grants are available in order to encourage both temporary and permanent placemaking of varying levels of size and scope. Grant names Grant amount Number of grants Examples* available annually Shade structure, intersection mural, public art Large Up to $20,000 1 Identity signage, seating area, painted Economic Up to $10,000 1 crosswalk, artifacts Development Edible forest, mural, ping pong table Medium Up to $6,000 3 Exercise equipment/group fitness class, pop-up Health Up to $2,000 1 farmers market, bicycle fix-it station Sustainability Up to $2,000 1 Rainwater harvesting/garden, pet waste composter Small Up to $1,000 8 Information boards, pop-up lemonade stand, pop-up conversion of parking spot into mini- park Total Up to $60,000 15 *These are provided as examples to get people thinking. Use your own creativity to come up with more ideas not on this list! 8 - 9 Appendix A 4.Who can apply Applications from residents, community groups and/or businesses in Kitchener neighbourhoods will be accepted, including: Residents who form a committee/group for the purpose of a specific project. Neighbourhood-based or community groups already formed (such as non-profit organizations, neighbourhood associations, hobby or special interest groups, etc.). Businesses can apply for the economic development grant only. Businesses must partner with at least one other business and a group of residents on their grant application. 5.Where projects can occur Projects must occur within Kitchener city limits and be geographically defined within a neighbourhood. Acceptable locations include: City of Kitchener land, such as parks, trails, greenways, boulevards, parking areas, cul-de-sacs, etc. Preference given to projects located on City-owned land. Other publicly owned land* such as school boards, Region of Waterloo, etc. Privately owned land* that is openly accessible to the general public and not owned by a business (e.g. parking lots, green space around faith/cultural buildings, not-for-profit organizations, etc.). *Advance permission by the landowners will be required to be eligible for this grant. 6.How the grant process works The Neighbourhood Placemaking Challenge is an open competition, hosted annually by the City of Kitchener. Approved applications will best meet the selection criteria in each particular round of applications. The date(s) of the Neighbourhood Placemaking Challenge Day(s) will change annually, to encourage placemaking in all seasons of the year. To ensure multiple areas of the city benefit from this grant, preference will be given to awarding at The same group cannot receive the Large grant two years in a row, to encourage equitable distribution among neighbourhoods. If qualified applications do not exist in a particular grant category, those funds can be redistributed to qualified applications in other grant categories, at the discretion of the selection committee. The Economic Development grant is only available to neighbourhoods outside of the Downtown Community Improvement Plan boundary. Applicants cannot combine the Neighbourhood Placemaking Challenge grant with other City of Kitchener grants or funding. Residents may apply for multiple grants, but can only be awarded one grant per year. Applicants are welcome to contribute their own funds or receive donations to support their project, but the ability to raise additional funds will not be an evaluating factor of proposals. 8 - 10 Appendix A 7.Selection criteria The selection committee will evaluate all applications based on these required criteria: Placemaking principles a)Creates a gathering place Project creates a destination in a way that considers the local context, is specific and unique to the place and/or neighbourhood, and has some form of physical intervention that is more than a single event. b)Multi-use The project introduces at least one more thing to attract people of different ages and backgrounds to have reason to spend time in the place. Preference given to projects that complement or leverage already existing amenities or features. c)Accessible The project encourages all people to enjoy and participate in the opportunities that the place provides. d)Creativity The project includes elements of creativity, fun and spontaneity. Preference given to new or innovative ideas. Achievable plan e)Resident support - Applicants have actively sought the involvement and support of residents near the proposed place or have a well-thought out plan to do so if awarded the grant. f)Project plan - Applicants have described how they will execute the project, including key tasks, milestones and any expected approvals. g)Budget - An accurate budget with fully costed items is described. h)Safety & risk - Project is mindful of public safety and addresses potential risks. Additional criteria Applications for the Economic Development, Health and Sustainability grants will need to meet the above criteria, as well as the following additional criteria, respectively: i)Economic development The project builds pride in the neighbourhood by involving multiple businesses and encourages new partnerships between businesses and local residents. j)Health An application should address at least two of the following: physical activity, sun safety/shade, active transportation (walking, cycling, etc.), access to fresh and healthy food, mental health, walkable and complete communities, accessible connections between places and people, and built environments that improve quality of life, social cohesion and well-being. k)Sustainability An application should address at least two of the following: water quality, water conservation, energy conservation, energy regeneration or renewable energy, air quality, waste reduction and management, reuse of materials, active transportation, actions that help prevent or adapt to climate change, carbon emissions reductions, and actions that encourage sustainability into our community culture. 8.Selection committee The selection committee will include equal representation of volunteers from the community and city staff. 8 - 11 Appendix A 9.How to apply There will be two rounds of applications each year: o The Large, Medium and Economic Development grants will accept applications approximately 10-12 months before the Challenge Day(s). o The Small grants will accept applications approximately 4-5 months before the Challenge Day(s). o The exact deadlines for each year will be announced by the City of Kitchener with plenty of time for residents to come up with ideas and prepare their applications. An application form will be available online during the application rounds, with questions directly pertaining to the selection criteria. 10.Responsibilities of the group applying Applicants are required to: Take the lead on all aspects of the project. City staff is available to help residents navigate city hall and secure necessary approvals. Animate their project sometime during the Neighbourhood Placemaking Challenge Day(s). Have a committee in place to lead the project, with a significant number of people who live and/or work in the neighbourhood where the project is located. Have a bank ac Recognize the contribution of the City of Kitchener on all materials. Provide an accurate accounting of all expenses. Provide feedback after completion of the project, to help educate residents about placemaking and to assist with future administration of the grant. 11.Additional information While neighbourhood placemaking can occur year-round, this grant is intended to provide some extra incentive for people who need encouragement to put their idea into action. If residents are not able to implement or animate their project on the Challenge Day(s), they are encouraged to apply for the Neighbourhood Matching Grant instead, found at kitchener.ca/lovemyhoodgrant. 12.Contact information More information and placemaking resources can be found at lovemyhood.ca, or contact: Darren Kropf Neighbourhood Development Office, City of Kitchener darren.kropf@kitchener.ca, 519-741-2200 ext. 7083 8 - 12