Growing Conversations Phase 2 update presentation
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The document outlines the objectives and progress of Phase 2 of a study to improve community planning processes in Toronto. The objectives are to understand current engagement models, explore new advisory groups and tools, and broaden participation. Implementation includes developing strategies for stakeholder partnerships, youth engagement, ethnic media, and open data. Over 800 participants have been engaged through various consultation methods. Opportunities for change and draft principles of effective engagement have been identified. Next steps include finalizing recommendations and strategies, further consultations, and a final report.
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Growing Conversations Phase 2 update presentation
- 2. STUDYOBJECTIVES 1. Better understand the strengths and weaknesses of the current community planning process in Toronto 2. Explore new engagement models and tools 3. Explore opportunities and best practices related to implementing Community Planning Advisory Groups in each Ward (or geographic area) 4. Explore opportunities to broaden participation among key audiences, including youth, new immigrants, and low-income residents 5. Identify other opportunities to improve the quality of feedback through the community planning process
- 3. IMPLEMENTATION 1 Strategic Direction 2 Strategic Direction 3 Strategic Direction VISION: To become North America’s most engaged city on planning issues Opportunities for Change STUDYFRAMEWORK Pillars of Effective Engagement Opportunities for Change Actions Actions Actions
- 4. STUDYELEMENTS Stakeholder Partnership Strategy Ethnic Media Strategy Engagement Action Plan Youth Engagement Strategy Open Data Framework
- 5. The Process so Far
- 6. 1 Building Blocks Identify & pursue key stakeholder partners Identify ethnic media partners & develop Ethnic Media Strategy Public Launch WE ARE HERE Opportunities & Constraints Identify draft Opportunities for Change Identify draft Pillars of Effective Engagement 1 2 3GROWING PARTNERSHIPS TAKING STOCK April – June 2014 YOUTH ENGAGEMENT STRATEGY STUDYTIMELINE July – Dec 2014 DEVELOPING SOLUTIONS Winter/Spring 2015 4REPORTING BACK Summer/Fall 2015 Strategic Directions & Actions Identify draft Strategic Directions Identify draft Actions Final Recommendations Final Report ETHNIC MEDIA STRATEGY
- 7. WHO HAVE WE ENGAGED? Growing Conversations Public Launch 23 participants Growing Conversations Web Survey 189 participants IdeaSpaceTO 135 participants Key Stakeholder Advisory Committee Meetings 18 participants Open Data Workshop 18 participants Resident Association Roundtables (4 Districts) 30 participants Youth Engagement Strategy 431 participants Total: 844 participants
- 8. PARTNERSHIPSTRATEGY Objective Develop partnerships with key organizations to broaden engagement among key audiences, including youth, new immigrants, and low income residents. Initial Meeting: July 29th Key Themes: • Need for a more holistic, sustained, active engagement process. • Accessibility is key. Both in terms of language and process – simple, clear, transparent. • A greater focus should be placed on information sharing as part of the engagement process. • It is important to avoid over-engagement. One strategy is to better integrate engagement about planning issues into other processes or events. STAKEHOLDER
- 9. ENGAGEMENTSTRATEGY Objective Develop a strategy to better engage 18-30 year olds in planning processes. Methodology The Strategy is employing a youth research team to study the issue of youth engagement and provide recommendations. The Strategy will be ready by January 2015 and will be implemented as a pilot project through the Comprehensive to the Core downtown study. Initial Meeting: October 2014 Follow up Meeting: December 9th, 2014 - Discussed draft issues, barriers and suggestions to improve youth engagement Over the course of 36 days, 431 youth from over 15 neighbourhoods across Toronto participated in consultations related to the Youth Engagement Strategy. YOUTH
- 10. MEDIASTRATEGY Objective Build capacity within the newcomer community to better understand local planning issues and encourage engagement through 12 monthly planning columns in five major ethnic newspapers. Established Partnerships Cantonese (Chinese Canadian Times) Mandarin (Epoch Times) Spanish (El Centro) Tamil (The Sri Lankan Reporter) Tagalog (The Philippine Reporter) Initial Publication: July 2014 To Date: - Publication of the initial article - Completion of the remaining articles - Awaiting translation to proceed with the series ETHNIC
- 11. OPEN DATAFRAMEWORK Objective Develop a set of guidelines to provide clarity to both staff and the public regarding the appropriate circumstances under which data sets will be made available through Open Data. Initial Meeting: Oct. 30 Next Steps: City Planning has released: 3D Massing model of the city City Planning has committed to releasing: Secondary Plans and Site Specific Plans Development Application statistics/details C of A Application statistics/details Service Area Boundaries
- 12. What we’ve heard
- 13. 1. Development Review Process 2. Inclusivity 3. Transparency & Accountability 4. Planning Literacy 5. Access to Information 6. Online & Mobile Technology 7. Collaborations 8. Community OPPORTUNITIES FOR CHANGE DRAFT
- 14. 1. Transparent 2. Timely 3. Iterative 4. Inclusive 5. Innovative 6. Respectful 7. Educational 8. Fun 9. Community-building PRINCIPLES OF EFFECTIVE ENGAGEMENT DRAFT
- 15. • Ipsos Reid survey completed in December • New City Planning presentation template – Winter 2015 • New Summary Report protocol – Winter 2015 • New Development Application signage – Spring/Summer 2015 Related Initiatives
- 16. • Youth Engagement Strategy to be completed by early March 2015 • Finalize Principles for Effective Engagement & Opportunities for Change • Second round of consultations – spring 2015 • Develop draft Strategic Directions • Develop draft Actions • Ethnic Media Strategy rollout • Open Data Framework • Final report to Council in mid to late 2015 NEXT STEPS
- 17. Thank You
Editor's Notes
- Ethnic Media Strategy – Cantonese, Mandarin, Spanish, Tamil and Tagalog
- Growing Conversations is an exciting initiative from the City of Toronto to help make Toronto the most engaged city in North America. Growing Conversations is central to the effort to improve participation in the planning process. This city-wide initiative will offer a variety of opportunities for residents to engage with planning staff to craft a better consultation process. Let’s talk!
- Development review process Each year, 15,000-20,000 Torontonians participate in in-person consultation events led by the City of Toronto Planning Division, the majority of which are related to development applications. However, the current structure of the development review process can leave residents feeling frustrated and as if their feedback is not contributing to shaping outcomes. Improvements to the Development Review process are needed in order to relieve resident frustrations, improve transparency, build greater trust with the community, and better inform final planning recommendations. Inclusivity An inclusive planning process ensures that people feel welcome and are able to participate freely. Pilot projects to test new online and in-person engagement tools and better-designed educational materials are some of the ways that City Planning is working to increase the inclusivity of the planning process. Further improvements to the engagement process should help to make it more inclusive and accessible through more regular use of plain language, increasing the variety of mediums offered for engagement and scheduling meetings at times that suit differing schedules. Transparency & Accountability When people don't understand how their feedback has been used to inform planning, transparency and accountability suffer. Making a stronger connection between inputs from the community and project outcomes by being clearer about how feedback is used can only increase the accessibility and transparency of the planning process. Planning Literacy The planning process in Ontario is complex and difficult to navigate, and this can be intimidating to many people, creating a barrier to participation. City Planning currently works to build planning literacy through initiatives such as Planning 101 meetings and World Town Planning Day outreach, as well through easy-to-understand informational pamphlets. Expanding our efforts to build Torontonians' understanding of planning concepts, principles and processes will go a long way towards more inclusive engagement, and more relevant, accessible communication. Access to information Recent initiatives such as the new Application Information Centre, expanded use of Twitter and an improved website have greatly increased residents' access to planning-related information. In 2013, for example, over 103,000 people interacted with the new online zoning map, and there were more than 1 million page views on the City Planning website. Still, many Torontonians find it difficult to locate and access information related to development applications or planning processes happening in their communities. They want to see improvedr notification mechanisms that inform them of new planning applications, the time and locations of meetings and updates on the progress of development applications. Improving access to this information should promote greater participation. Open Data can play a key role in realizing this opportunity. Online and mobile technology People are looking for new ways to expand participation in planning processes beyond the traditional community meeting. Online and mobile applications are now making this easier than ever to accommodate. Canada has one of the highest Internet penetration rates in the world, with between 85% and 90% of Canadians enjoying access to an Internet connection; and close to 60% have a smartphone. Canadians also spend more time online than any other nation on the planet, with an average of 45 hours per month spent surfing the web. City Planning has already begun to make better use of these technologies through the use of online surveys, improvements to our website, the launch of a Twitter account and the piloting of the City's new online engagement platform, IdeaSpaceTO. There is an opportunity to leverage online and mobile technologies even further in order to make participation easier and more convenient, improve awareness and disseminate information more effectively. Collaborations Across Toronto, there are organizations doing incredible work engaging and building communities. These organizations, which are both internal and external to the City of Toronto, possess valuable knowledge about the communities that they serve, and can help City Planning to unlock new relationships with residents. City Planning already works closely with such partners as the University of Toronto, Ryerson University, the TTC, the Pembina Institute, Civic Action, Evergreen Brickworks, the Toronto Public Library and a long list of community organizations. By expanding and building new partnerships with these and other organizations, City Planning can grow its reach significantly, improve engagement broadly, and enhance its contribution to city building and city life. Community Throughout our consultations, we consistently heard how effective engagement helps to foster feelings of belonging and well-being that are important for community-building. Decades ago, City Planning's role in building community was supported by a neighbourhood presence in communities across the old city. Residents today, however, feel disconnected from the planners working in their neighbourhoods. Planners in Public Spaces, launched in 2013, is an important step towards giving planners a more visible community role. Expanding on this initiative to connect planners even further to their communities will help build stronger relationships with residents while also acknowledging the important role that engagement plays in building community.
- Transparent Engagement processes should be transparent by providing clarity on the level of engagement residents can expect, making records of consultation processes available to the public in a timely manner, and clearly indicating how feedback has affected project outcomes. Timely Engagement processes should be designed to ensure that feedback is sought at appropriate and meaningful times in a planning process. Iterative Engagement processes should be iterative, providing multiple opportunities for participants both to offer feedback and to see how their feedback has been used. Inclusive Engagement processes should be designed to engage the widest possible audience, and should include strategies to reach under-represented groups, including youth, newcomers and renters. Innovative Engagement processes should be designed using innovative methodologies in order to achieve the highest level of engagement possible. Respectful Engagement processes should be respectful of the expert knowledge that residents have of their communities, and should promote a respectful and positive environment where people feel comfortable voicing constructive opinions. Educational Planning processes should seek to improve the public's understanding of planning issues, with clear objectives to improve planning literacy. Fun Where appropriate, engagement processes should be designed to be as fun as possible for participants . Community-building Engagement processes should be designed to encourage community-building by strengthening relationships between members of the community and between members of the community and the City Planning Division.