Growing Together

Thank you for participating in the Growing Together engagement throughout November. If you have made a written submission to our email address, provided comments through conversations in November, and/or provided comments through the engage page they have been received.

Staff will be reviewing and considering all submissions throughout the month of December as they prepare final recommendations on land use and zoning changes for the Growing Together geography. You can expect to hear from us with a response to your submission if you have made one in early January.

Comment responses will be followed shortly thereafter with the staff recommended Official Plan amendment and Zoning By-law amendment that are expected to be considered by Council later in January. This Council meeting is also known as a Statutory Public Meeting.

Comments on the staff recommended Official Plan and Zoning By-law amendments can be made directly to Council as part of the Statutory Public Meeting. More details on the Statutory Public Meeting will be provided a minimum of 20 days in advance in accordance with the requirements of the Planning Act.

Thank you for all your participation throughout the Growing Together process!

The Growing Together Team

Over the last few months, the Growing Together team has been working on the details of our proposed planning framework that will guide growth and change within Kitchener’s Major Transit Station Areas. We are pleased to present those materials here:

• Draft Official Plan Amendment
• Draft Zoning By-law Amendment
• Draft Official Plan and Land Use Mapping
• Draft Zoning Mapping
• Growing Together Community Brief, which provides an easy-to-understand overview of the project; and
• Growing Together Community Guide, which provides a more detailed and in-depth look at various factors informing Growing Together

Below is a brief video walkthrough of the basics of the community guide.

What do you think?

Please provide us your comments on the draft materials by November 30, 2023. We will then present our final report with your feedback to Kitchener City Council.

Add your comments

Meet with us in person!

Planning staff will be hosting a public open house at the Kitchener Market on Nov. 18, on the upper level near the main entrance from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m.

We will also be available to meet one-on-one or in small groups during our Office Hour Walk-Ins, held on:

• Tuesday, Nov. 14 from 3 to 6 p.m. at the Mill Courtland Community Centre, 216 Mill Street, Multi-Purpose room
• Monday, Nov. 20 from 3 to 6 p.m. at the Downtown Community Centre, 35 Weber Street West, Multi-Purpose room

Please Note

These draft materials are not final and changes may be made based on continued dialogue with the community, industry stakeholders and agency stakeholders. This may include updates such as applying holding provisions to individual properties where a record of site condition or a noise study is required, for example. Properties impacted by these changes will be notified by mail.

Throughout the past three months, the Growing Together team has been working to develop the Draft Approach to Growth and Change in the Major Transit Station Areas. The draft approach to growth and change combines public and stakeholder feedback and aligns with key City objectives to:

• Address the housing crisis by improving housing choice and affordability in Kitchener’s Major Transit Station Areas.
• Address the climate emergency by creating transit-supportive communities, maximizing the use of existing infrastructure and leveraging new infrastructure.
• Encourage a shift towards active transportation and transit within complete communities that provide for people’s daily needs.
• Help bring more people, activity, life, and diversity to Kitchener’s Major Transit Station Areas.

The draft approach recommends a new land use category called Strategic Growth Areas. The Strategic Growth Areas will allow a wide variety of housing types and a mix of uses within the Major Transit Station Areas. The Strategic Growth Areas are proposed to be implemented in the following four draft zones:

• Strategic Growth Area 1 (SGA-1): Low-Rise
• Strategic Growth Area 2 (SGA-2): Mid-Rise
• Strategic Growth Area 3 (SGA-3): High-Rise Limited
• Strategic Growth Area 4 (SGA-4): High-Rise

Please read the Draft Approach to Growth and Change for a full description.

What do you think?

Help us plan for growth around Major Transit Station Areas (MTSA) in Kitchener. Until August 11, 2023 add your comments and ideas on:

• What are your thoughts on the draft approach to growth and change?
• What kinds of shops and services would you like to see in neighbourhoods near MTSAs?
• What streets near MTSAs are interesting and enjoyable and which need more to see and do?

Come chat with the Growing Together team!

We attended the Multicultural Festival on June 24th and spoke with over 100 community members about growth and change. We will also be at:

• Gaukel Block on Gaukel Street during the Downtown Kitchener Ribfest and Craft Beer Show (Saturday July 15) and
• Summer Series at the Kitchener Market (Wednesday July 19)

The Growing Together team will also be holding Office Hours on Friday, July 21 from 9:00 AM to 12:00 PM. You can book a 30-minute appointment with members of the Growing Together team by sending an email to growingtogether@kitchener.ca.

The City is continuing to engage on the Growing Together project, which is updating the planning framework for our Major Transit Station Areas, to enable and encourage responsible growth for the future.

We’re attending a series of events this summer to chat with the community about our draft approach to growth and change with the Growing Together team at the following dates and times:

June 24 2023

• Kitchener-Waterloo Multicultural Festival (find us at the Gaukel Block)
  

July 15 2023

• Downtown Kitchener Ribfest and Craft Beer Show (find us at the Gaukel Block)

July 19 2023

• Summer Series at Kitchener Market

Please feel free to drop-in any time during the above sessions. Participating in this project will provide residents with a greater understanding of the factors that influence growth and change in our city, as well as the city's obligations to accommodate this growth.

Throughout March and April, the Growing Together team held six community workshops which were attended by over 500 residents and community members. A What We Heard report has now been published to summarize the key feedback we heard during our engagement events. You can read the engagement report here.

Staff is presenting the summary report to members of Kitchener Council at the Planning and Strategic Initiatives meeting on Monday, June 19th. They will also present to members of Waterloo Council later this month.

We are now moving forward to the next phase of the project.

This summer, planning staff are attending a series of events to explore in a hands-on way how growth and change are happening in our community. During these engagements you will have the opportunity to comment on a draft land use and zoning approach. Your feedback, in combination with the feedback received through the Growing Together Workshops in March and April, will help inform the planning framework for Kitchener’s Major Transit Station Areas.

The City of Kitchener is growing, and a lot of that growth is happening in the areas around the ION LRT system. The City has launched the Growing Together project that will update the planning framework for these major transit station areas, enabling and encouraging responsible growth for the future.