Top Ten Ideas for the 2022 Municipal Election Campaign in St. Thomas
Andrew Gunn, Maddie King & Emily Stage of young & free press have assembled a list of key ideas that candidates might wish to address during the 2022 municipal election campaign in St. Thomas
Municipal elections in Ontario are scheduled for Monday, October 24, 2022. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has been significant and we need leaders who understand how to adapt and succeed in the aftermath. For St. Thomas, this means recognizing that the city is in the midst of an exciting transformation in which old conceptions of the community are fading and the identity of the place is being redefined. Our team has contributed substantially to this changeover through the design and implementation of a series of community-building projects, including new murals, park spaces, augmented reality experiences, education programs, and sustainability efforts. Still, we have a long way to go to reinvent St. Thomas for future growth. Many community leaders are enthusiastic about contributing to the process. Scores of people have moved into the community recently and can be engaged to generate new ideas.
With this in mind, we thought that we should put together our list of ‘Top Ten Ideas That We Hope Every Candidate Will Consider During the 2022 Municipal Election Campaign in St. Thomas’ … we think that aspiring leaders will need to wrestle with these ideas and articulate a vision for the next decade and beyond.
1 / Change the conversation about the downtown. Every space should be viewed as an opportunity for urban densification, cultural assets, and the imaginative integration of residential and commercial uses. Take city-building seriously and embrace the potential of creative, forward-thinking urban design. Think deeply about how to transform the area. This has been largely absent and we need to elevate the discussion.
2 / Consider building a cultural centre for the community. Concerts, live theatre, gallery spaces, film and education … we have done a wonderful job of gradually building up our recreation facilities community-wide, and now we should examine how to maximize the arts and culture sector. There are right ways and wrong ways to do this in a small city, but if done correctly, this could be an important catalyst for the downtown core. Open the conversation and invite local stakeholders to participate. Update: on December 20, 2021, City Council received a committee report looking at the potential of constructing a new aquatic centre in the city, one that might include other amenities such as a walking track, lap pool, library branch, and fitness area. There is currently no location or significant funding for this project. Members of Council agreed to explore the concept further to review the potential for partnerships and financial support.
3 / Continue to invest in active transit. We can easily add hard and soft infrastructure pieces to encourage more cycling, skateboarding, and walking. What if we could deliver the absolute best small-city experience for active transit? For the sake of the environment and our health, we need to reduce our dependence on cars and make other options safe and efficient. Adding charging stations for electric vehicles should be part of the discussion, too.
4 / Re-evaluate how much space we are allocating for cars and invest instead in places for people. This takes work and some tough decisions, but we are encouraged to see the City beginning to look at redeveloping parking lots in the downtown core. The plan for more residential units on the parking lot at the Elgin Centre is promising, too. We think the time has come to re-imagine these vast, desolate concrete spaces and aim for more densification, active transit resources, and pedestrian areas that can double as event spaces. Build for people, not cars.
5 / Think about land use in new subdivisions. While we recognize the demand for single detached residences, what options exist to encourage the development of more compact neighbourhoods that include commercial and cultural elements? We have a residential monoculture in many parts of the city, and this simply entrenches car dependency for years to come. As St. Thomas grows, why can we not plan neighbourhoods that are unique, culturally vibrant, and walkable?
6 / Invest in tourism and program events on a consistent basis. Coming out of the COVID-19 pandemic, the aim should be to have things happening every week downtown and in Pinafore Park. Look at Nostalgia Nights along Talbot Street, or the recent Christmas Market at the Horton Farmers’ Market – the people show up for fun stuff! Close the streets now and then for festivals and special events. We should aim for a consistent swirl of activity. Culture matters.
7 / Consider the needs of emerging demographic groups. The pandemic has prompted a shift to working-from-home, and simultaneously real estate prices have skyrocketed. What can be done to attract people in the 18 – 30 age range to move to St. Thomas? Our vision would be for adding attractive apartment buildings downtown, investing in parks, daycares, cultural spaces and active transit, and building a light rail transit link to London. Yes, this would be expensive, and yes, there are political challenges, but this would set up St. Thomas for sustainable growth for decades. We are encouraged to see recent investments in affordable housing, and obviously residential units of all types are required to meet the needs of community members. The trick is to remember that the cultural pieces need to be built simultaneously. In June 2020, we announced a donation of $500,000 from the Estate of Donna Bushell to the City of St. Thomas to build a new park by the St. Thomas Public Library. Subsequently, the City applied for additional funding from provincial and federal sources to enhance the project, and were successful with these requests. At a special meeting on Tuesday, November 30, 2021, City Council approved the construction of a new daycare centre on an under-utilized parking lot nearby. This is the sort of collaboration that we need. Every space in the city matters.
8 / Light up the downtown. There are fascinating ways to add lighting in downtown spaces, both for aesthetic purposes and public safety. Often there are cost efficiencies as well, if we look beyond traditional options. The goal should be to make the core more welcoming after hours. Right now, the downtown is designed to empty at night. This needs to change. There are countless opportunities to build cool spaces for people and activate these areas. Let lighting be the catalyst for these improvements.
9 / Spark the redevelopment of dormant properties. There are large properties sitting empty downtown and within walking distance to the core. We are very grateful that Doug Tarry Homes is interested in adding apartment buildings on the railway lands east of Ross Street, and also is supporting the push by the YWCA to add a low-rise apartment building and a series of tiny homes on Kains Street. These are very positive moves. Other developers and local home-builders have taken on some awesome in-fill projects along the L&PS railway corridor. There remain many other sites, though, where apartment buildings and park spaces could be added, and we hope City Council members will work aggressively to kickstart these transformations. Another goal should be to engage the Municipality of Central Elgin, Elgin County, and the Province of Ontario on a plan to redevelop the grounds of the former Psychiatric Hospital. This is a monumental project, of course, but why not get started? Perhaps the public could have some input into what happens with this site.
10 / Recognize the significance of adding new schools downtown. For far too long, the trend has been to close down schools in urban cores and build new at the edges of the community in nascent subdivisions. Investing in public education is one of the most important ways to make downtowns more liveable. If we want to encourage young people to live in the core and eventually raise families there, we need to consider investment in new schools, daycare centres, parks, arts and culture hubs, and recreation amenities. Small businesses benefit from having students nearby, too. Downtowns should be places for people of all ages.
Bonus idea: Look at the organizations that are driving community engagement and get involved. Solutions come from recognizing the power of collective vision. We have helped to set up the STEAM Community Studio at the STEAM Centre, which is dedicated to prototyping solutions to persistent local challenges. Our team has also developed the ‘Students Build Cities’ program in collaboration with the Thames Valley District School Board to connect students directly to community projects. These are important platforms to advance city-building. We have been really encouraged to see City Council and staff members getting involved and helping to drive these conversations. St. Thomas has limitless potential to grow both in large and small ways.
We hope these ideas spark lots of conversation, and we are happy to hear suggestions from others, too! The next election is important for St. Thomas and we want the city to grow in smart and sustainable ways. Leadership and collaboration are the starting points.
