posting
11-30-2007, 02:15 AM
Workshop seeks to spur growth of neighborhood associations
KTW Staff Kingston this Week
2007-11-29
When the physical condition of the schoolyard at James R. Henderson Public School deteriorated into a pothole-scarred wasteland, Angela Braby and other parents turned it into an attractively landscaped centre for fun, fitness and relaxation.
To give young children in her north-end neighborhood a place to play and cool off in summer, Gillian Moss toiled for years to get a brand-new splash pad installed in Shannon Park.
To help smooth troubled relations between students and permanent residents near its downtown campus, Queen’s University purchased a house on Aberdeen Street – site of the infamous annual street party – and recruited Marija Linjacki to act as a full-time community outreach coordinator.
In each of these cases, the participants cooperated with others to help make their neighborhood a better place to live. It’s no surprise, then, that Braby, Moss and Linjacki will be among the guest speakers at Creating Vibrant Neighborhoods: A Practical Approach, a Dec. 5 workshop aimed at showing Kingston citizens how they can improve the quality of life in their own part of the city. The keynote speaker will be Dr. Leela Viswanathan, a Queen’s University expert on urban community development.
The group that organized the event – the Neighborhoods and Transportation Committee of the Kingston Roundtable on Quality of Life – hopes to inspire local citizens to make positive things happen in their own area by joining or starting a neighborhood association.
Doing so has numerous benefits, says committee chair Bernie DeGagné.
“Some parts of Kingston aren’t represented by neighborhood associations, so people in those areas might have a harder time making their voices heard at City Hall,” he says.
“You can always call your local councillor, but it’s often easier and a lot more enjoyable to accomplish a given task by working with your friends and neighbours.”
For example, the McBurney Park Neighborhood Association, the Sydenham Ward Tenants and Ratepayers Association and the Portsmouth Villagers Community Association have each contributed meaningfully to the well-being of the areas they represent by planting trees, organizing seasonal festivals, improving playgrounds and addressing traffic and other concerns, says DeGagné.
“It’s important to establish grassroots groups like this in parts of Kingston where they don’t already exist,” says DeGagné. “Our workshop is meant to provide information and inspiration for those residents who want to start one, but aren’t quite sure how to do it.”
Creating Vibrant Neighborhoods: A Practical Approach takes place on Wednsday, Dec. 5 from 7-9 p.m. in the Delahaye Room of the Central branch of the Kingston Frontenac Public Library (130 Johnson St.).
Admission is free. For more information or to RSVP, call Andrea Wilmot at 613-546-2843 [Social Planning Council].
KTW Staff Kingston this Week
2007-11-29
When the physical condition of the schoolyard at James R. Henderson Public School deteriorated into a pothole-scarred wasteland, Angela Braby and other parents turned it into an attractively landscaped centre for fun, fitness and relaxation.
To give young children in her north-end neighborhood a place to play and cool off in summer, Gillian Moss toiled for years to get a brand-new splash pad installed in Shannon Park.
To help smooth troubled relations between students and permanent residents near its downtown campus, Queen’s University purchased a house on Aberdeen Street – site of the infamous annual street party – and recruited Marija Linjacki to act as a full-time community outreach coordinator.
In each of these cases, the participants cooperated with others to help make their neighborhood a better place to live. It’s no surprise, then, that Braby, Moss and Linjacki will be among the guest speakers at Creating Vibrant Neighborhoods: A Practical Approach, a Dec. 5 workshop aimed at showing Kingston citizens how they can improve the quality of life in their own part of the city. The keynote speaker will be Dr. Leela Viswanathan, a Queen’s University expert on urban community development.
The group that organized the event – the Neighborhoods and Transportation Committee of the Kingston Roundtable on Quality of Life – hopes to inspire local citizens to make positive things happen in their own area by joining or starting a neighborhood association.
Doing so has numerous benefits, says committee chair Bernie DeGagné.
“Some parts of Kingston aren’t represented by neighborhood associations, so people in those areas might have a harder time making their voices heard at City Hall,” he says.
“You can always call your local councillor, but it’s often easier and a lot more enjoyable to accomplish a given task by working with your friends and neighbours.”
For example, the McBurney Park Neighborhood Association, the Sydenham Ward Tenants and Ratepayers Association and the Portsmouth Villagers Community Association have each contributed meaningfully to the well-being of the areas they represent by planting trees, organizing seasonal festivals, improving playgrounds and addressing traffic and other concerns, says DeGagné.
“It’s important to establish grassroots groups like this in parts of Kingston where they don’t already exist,” says DeGagné. “Our workshop is meant to provide information and inspiration for those residents who want to start one, but aren’t quite sure how to do it.”
Creating Vibrant Neighborhoods: A Practical Approach takes place on Wednsday, Dec. 5 from 7-9 p.m. in the Delahaye Room of the Central branch of the Kingston Frontenac Public Library (130 Johnson St.).
Admission is free. For more information or to RSVP, call Andrea Wilmot at 613-546-2843 [Social Planning Council].