Small is Mighty
How seemingly small actions and community-led urban biodiversity projects across the country are having a big impact.
City Profile
Waterloo
Waterloo
- At 43%, Waterloo is above average in percentage of parkland that is under special policy protection for sensitive ecosystems.
- Waterloo is one of 56% of cities that offers a community park group program.
- At 56%, Waterloo is above average in ratio of parkland that is natural area.
- Waterloo is developing its first woonerf, or ‘living street’, in the Northdale neighbourhood, which will include enhanced public space, trees and vegetation, and possibly a snow-melting system.
- Waterloo’s annual Lumen festival of light, art, and technology uses participatory art installations in parks to engage communities with public space in new and non-traditional ways.
- Following the installation of an artist-designed community harvest table that seats 200 in Waterloo Park, the city is expanding the harvest table initiative to other parks.
Data 2020
6.9
ha parkland per 1000 people
946 ha total parkland
56%
of total parkland is natural area
530 total ha²
43%
of parkland is environmentally significant/protected
405 total ha
15%
of total city land is parkland
6400 ha of total city area
1
Dog parks
4
Community gardens/urban farms
5
Parkland provision goal (ha per 1000 people)
8.6
volunteers per 1000 people
1180 total
2
community park groups
No
Policy to waive permit fees for groups with financial need?
Community park group program
Community grant program
$49
Parks operating budget per person
$6,688,122 total
$12,738,000
Total parks capital budget
$50,126
Total philanthropy/sponsorships
Yes
Provincially legislated tools available for parkland development
Community Benefits Charge³
¹Source: 2017 Statistics Canada. ²Increase from 2019 due to updated information. ³This tool was introduced in 2019 and is still under review. Previous Provincial legislation allowed 5% of development site or cash-in-lieu.
Environmental Strategies
related Waterloo stories
Take me out to the dog park
How cities are dealing with the high demand for—and high controversy around—dog parks.
The Space Squeeze
As populations and development boom in many cities, finding space for new parks is creating challenges—and spurring innovation
The New Wave of Parks
Leading examples of projects that use creative measures to expand parkland
Power to the People
Park groups of all types are delivering outsize impacts for their communities through collaborative programming—but they need support in order to thrive.
Feed them and they will come
How creative community groups and city support are growing connections through food in parks.
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