Shifting the Conversation: Improving Community Engagement

Most planning projects and processes include opportunities for public input, but the methods and approaches that are used vary widely from one municipality to another and even from one project to another.  

Over the last five years, the Kitchener planning team has made significant strides in facilitating public engagement that is timely, more equitable, effective and meaningful.  Five significant shifts to our planning work have led to: 

-    Including more members of our community; 
-    Providing simpler and clearer information to the community;
-    Creating an interactive map with development application material;
-    Facilitating virtual neighbourhood meetings; and 
-    Leveraging community working groups.

In 2021, Kitchener completed the Development Services Review, a comprehensive review that created a framework and momentum for continuous improvement with a focus on the “Lean” methodology.  Over 100 staff were directly engaged in completing 18 Lean improvement (kaizen) projects across development services.  As a result, a staff team recommended five key improvements related to public engagement: 1) including both tenants and property owners in the circulation of a development application; 2) expanding the circulation distance to 240 m instead of the 120 m radius of the subject property required by the Planning Act; 3) creating simpler, graphic postcards to be mailed out and large billboard notice signs to be posted on properties; 4) creating an interactive map that hosts all the material related to a development application, and 5) the use of Community Working Groups (CWGs).

By including both tenants and property owners in the circulation, Kitchener ensured that all community members who may be interested in or impacted by new development applications would be notified.  Further, in some parts of the city there are larger lots, meaning that a circulation distance of 120 m sometimes only included a small number of adjacent properties. By expanding the circulation distance to 240 m for each application, more adjacent and surrounding tenants and property owners were made aware of new development proposals. Finally, staff recognized that the small traditional black-and-white notice signs were not welcoming, user-friendly or accessible to many members of the community.  By redesigning the notification post cards and notice signs to include a key map, preliminary renderings, a standard set of icons with basic easy to understand data, neighbourhood meeting information, and a link to the application, the City demonstrated a genuine commitment to making information legible and accessible. 



Photo: Notice sign for a Zoning By-law Amendment in 2019
 

Photo: Notice sign of an Official Plan and Zoning By-law Amendment in 2021

Another impactful outcome of the Development Services Review was the creation of an interactive, online mapping tool that allows anyone who is interested to find information about any active or recent development applications in the city.  The improved postcards and large notice signs include shortened URLs to an online application which includes links to all of the reports, plans and studies that are submitted with a complete application as well as an application status bar to indicate where the application is in the development application process.  This online tool has been widely used by residents, members of the development industry, external agencies, City staff and members of Council.  By posting the application materials online at the start of the process, important information is accessible; the development process is more transparent to the public; and potential questions or inquiries of staff are pre-emptively addressed through available information.


 
Photo: Screen capture from Kitchener’s Interactive Planning Application Tool

Prior to the pandemic, Kitchener held in-person neighbourhood meetings for development applications in community facilities in a ‘town hall’ format where speakers at the front of the room addressed an audience that was typically seated in rows. At times, the format of these meetings led to situations where some members of the public dominated the question and answer period while others felt uncomfortable participating or asking questions. In some situations, these meetings could include grandstanding, heckling, raised voices and other actions that are not conducive to constructive dialogue.  During the pandemic, neighbourhood meetings changed to a virtual format held on Zoom. These virtual meetings eliminated opportunities for grandstanding and led to greater participation from meeting attendees. Similar questions received during the presentation are grouped and staff or the applicant provide a comprehensive response. At the end, a non-recorded open microphone session is held for additional conversational dialogue (similar to the informal chats at the end of an in-person meeting). The neighbourhood meetings are also recorded and made available on the City website so that anyone unable to attend the meeting can view it afterwards. A call in number is provided for community members without internet access. Utilizing an online format reduces staff resources, reduces barriers to participation, and allows for remote access (including mobile) for staff, the applicant, and the community. 

Staff received feedback from members of the public expressing appreciation for the virtual format as it provides more flexibility for those with commitments in the evening who are not able to travel to an in-person meeting or cannot arrange childcare. 

Perhaps the most significant and impactful change in public engagement methods occurred through the City’s implementation of community working groups (CWGs).  The use of community working groups in Kitchener began with the Cycling and Trails Master Plan in 2019. The formation of this CWG brought together a group of community members representing different industries, backgrounds and perspectives and facilitated the opportunity for them to learn more about cycling infrastructure, multi-modal considerations and transportation planning as they provided input on the downtown cycling grid.  After a year of monthly meetings, this CWG proposed a new cycling grid to Council in 2020 which received unanimous approval.  The CWG model was used again in 2022 to bring together community members with wide ranging interests and priorities to develop a community led, staff supported vision for Downtown Kitchener. The CWG informed, guided, and participated in themed conversations every month from June 2022 to September 2023. The vision developed by the CWG was presented to Council by the community co-chair with the support of staff and received unanimous support from Kitchener Council. 

 

Building on the success of these CWG experiences, combined with staff and Kitchener Council’s desire to “go big” and be meaningful and intentional with community engagement on Kitchener’s new Official Plan, a CWG was created as one component of the public engagement plan for Kitchener2051, Kitchener’s new Official Plan. For this CWG, there was an application intake period that sought interest from residents who self-identified with certain characteristics or life experiences such as those living with a disability or those belonging to a racialized group. Nearly 150 applications were submitted to the City from a wide range of community members. The application allowed community members to voluntarily indicate which areas of lived expertise they felt could contribute to the project along with questions about their interest in joining the CWG and confirmation that they could commit to actively participating in monthly meetings during the entire 18 months of the project.

The applications were anonymized and provided to a selection committee made up of several community members from the City’s Equity and Anti-Racism Advisory Committee, and former members of other City committees and Planning staff. Community members outnumbered Planning staff. The selection process identified the City’s socio-demographics and set targets to prioritize equity-deserving communities and lived experiences. The selection committee reviewed the applications, including the applicants’ interest in participating and ultimately recommended 32 applications move forward for the composition of the Kitchener2051 CWG. The final membership of the CWG demonstrates a strong representation of equity-denied, intersectional identities and voices that are typically absent in planning processes.

-    32% identify as 2SLGBTQIA+
-    36% immigrated to Canada, with 21% of those arriving in the last 5 years
-    26% identified as living with a disability
-    24% are post-secondary students
-    56% of members belong to a racialized group
-    47% are renters, or non-ownership living arrangements (ie. living with family)
-    3 members are under 18, and 8 are under the age of 30
-    At least 2 members from each ward 

The Kitchener2051 CWG first met in September 2024 and established a set of values and a community agreement for the duration of the project.




The Kitchener2051 CWG has been in place for 6 months, but this group of committed and passionate residents of all ages and lived experiences has already inspired, challenged and transformed our approach to this Official Plan.  The staff time and resources required to establish a CWG  are significant, but the impact of bringing together representative voices from the community to work through a planning project that they champion in their communities and with their networks cannot be overstated.  

If the goal is broader public reach and higher quality public engagement, then more inclusive circulations; large graphic notice signs; virtual neighbourhood meetings; accessible online application materials and community working groups are effective tools to achieve them. These approaches will remove long-standing barriers, bring new and underrepresented voices to the planning table and deliver more equitable, meaningful and public engagement.