Growing Together and Established Neighbourhoods in Kitchener

 

Southern Ontario Growth

The Ontario government's Growth in the Greater Golden Horseshoe (2020) identified transit as a major component:

This Plan … sets out a regional vision for transit, and seeks to align transit with growth by directing growth to major transit station areas and other strategic growth areas. … this plan identifies priority transit corridors and the Province expects municipalities to complete detailed planning for major transit station areas… (A Place to Grow, p. 11).

Growing Together

Starting in March 2023 the City of Kitchener began to engage citizens on planning for intensification around transit stations in the downtown core, particularly around Major Transit Station Areas (MTSAs). The City of Kitchener began the Growing Together process in March/April 2023 to create a planning framework for Kitchener’s MTSAs that will be in place for many years to come. 

Planning staff began the process by holding workshops with the community and other stakeholders.  That led to analysis of the shape of the urban environment and mapping out growth areas within zones within an approximate on kilometre distance from transit stations.  That resulted in mapping and analysis of the ways to build spaces and places in the MTSAs that would provide livable and sustainable forms for residential and other uses.  The process and the documents relating to the planning are available at the Growing Together website. 

Implications for Heritage Conservation and Established Neighbourhoods

 A major question is: how can we create a vibrant urban core and at the same time preserve the low-rise and historic residential neighbourhoods surrounding it?

There were fewer than 20 community responses on the Growing Together website.  It is a great deal of information to digest, but there will be opportunities to address the Planning and Strategic Initiatives Committee and Council meetings in January/February.

Community Responses

As you can see in the responses from local residents linked below, there are a number of issues when transit stations are also close to the low-rise heritage neighbourhoods that could see tens of thousands of new, expensive condominiums units next to and even within heritage conservation districts. 

The first focusses on the Olde Berlin Town neighbourhood to the East of the transit corridor:

Growing Together Proposal Response, by Hal Jaeger

The second focusses on the Victoria Park Neighbourhood to the West of the transit corridor. 

Responseto the Growing Together Final Draft, by Peggy Nickels, Gail Pool and SheldonAthos