Active Neighbourhoods Canada - Building Community-based Mandates for Walkable Urban Design ( breakout presentation )

Abstract

The Active Neighbourhoods Canada (ANC) project supports walking, cycling and vibrant streets through community-led and professionally developed urban design projects. The project represents a partnership between the Montreal Urban Ecology Centre, Toronto Centre for Active Transportation and Sustainable Calgary. Since 2013, each organization has been working with four communities, with the aim of implementing a design project in each. Major milestones include leading a participatory planning process; producing a “community portrait” that summarizes resident feedback and data; a professional design workshop; 3-5 design schemes for each neighbourhood; and a design selection kiosk, at which community members can provide feedback and vote on design concepts. This presentation focuses on the outcomes of an innovative engagement and design process in the communities with which Sustainable Calgary worked, namely: Bridgeland, Acadia, Marlborough and High River. Each community was situated in its own unique context, but also presented prototypical urban conditions through which to understand the broader region. In Bridgeland, we were challenged to consider the impact of major thoroughfares on liveability, and re-invite connectivity into a socially-isolated remnant institutional district. In Acadia, we tackled traffic-calming and urban legibility – in a neighbourhood with schools, seniors, and significant cut-through traffic – and proposed a model for the "soft edge" of a commercial zone. In Marlborough, we found under-used laneway spaces and pocket parks that could be brought back to life through green networks and moments of ’social refuge’. In High River, our view turned both big and small – from completing broad pathway routes to creating inviting pedestrian-scale spaces in the core. Between all four communities, common themes emerged around closed loops, active green edges and networks, and the spaces ‘behind’ primary roadways. This work showed how participatory urban design can influence improvements in the shape of communities, encourage empathy and activism among residents, and help develop a collective mandate for community change. Strategic collaboration was crucial to achieving milestones in this project, and our strengths-based approach proved important in capturing the imagination and enthusiasm of local residents and designers alike.