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Representative Projects | ||
Parks & Recreation Capital Improvement Plan Update
Gwinnett County, Georgia
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Gwinnett County – located north-east of Atlanta – is one of the fastest growing counties in the United States. This Plan identified current and future service gaps and facility needs and proposed a refined capital program for future expenditures. The public consultation process included targeted focus group sessions to address the needs of Gwinnett County's ethnically diverse communities. Prior to the Capital Improvement Plan Update, MBPC was selected through an international competition to update Gwinnett County's Comprehensive Parks and Recreation Master Plan. Significant Master Plan elements included the development of a comprehensive park inventory and database, a benchmarking exercise with five NRPA Gold Medal award winning communities, a detailed trends report, extensive mapping of facility locations and service radii, and consultation with citizens, service providers and officials. In 2008, Gwinnett County was awarded a Gold Medal by the NRPA for excellence in Parks and Recreation Management. |
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Use, Renovation & Replacement Study for Recreation &Public Use Facilities
City of Hamilton
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Our firm led a consulting team tasked with providing the City of Hamilton with a long-range sustainable strategy for managing the municipal portfolio of its indoor recreational infrastructure, including over 70 arenas, community centres, pools, seniors' centres, and halls. The Study lays out a high level strategic approach to facility planning which spans the next twenty-plus years. Specifically, strategies address: the physical deficiencies of existing facilities; current gaps in facility distribution or shortages; and future facility provision requirements as a result of population growth and changing needs. The Study included a detailed implementation and financial strategy that received high praise and was unanimously approved by City Council. The priorities established through the Study were instrumental in the City receiving Federal and Provincial grant funding. Subsequently, the City retained MBPC to undertake a similar Plan for outdoor recreational infrastructure. |
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Recreation, Parks, Open Space,
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Parks Policy Plan
City of St. CatharinesThe Parks Policy Plan includes strategies for planning, maintaining, and managing the City's parks, open space, trails, and associated facilities for a ten year period. The planning process involved a culmination of community input, in-depth research and sound planning practices and serves as a guide for parks, open space, and trails planning. In addition to recommending new Official Plan policies, the process also included a review and refinement of parkland classification standards and service levels. Subsequently, we were retained to undertake a Recreation Master Plan for the City. |
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Older Adult Project
City of Mississauga
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Feasibility Study for a New Facility
Boys & Girls Club of Niagara, City of Niagara Falls |
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| Increasing pressures and program demands placed upon an aging facility and changing market shares with other local service providers necessitated the need for this study. The scope of this Study focused on the components (and associated capital and operating costs) required in a new facility that best addresses the needs of the community and the Boys & Girls Club of Niagara. Led by MBPC, the consulting team examined options with respect to location and applied sound business planning techniques in order to ensure the capital and operating cost estimates are justifiable within the constraints of the City budget. Partnership principles, alignment with community needs, and a review of gaps and duplication in aquatic services were also key components of this Study. | ||
Kingsdale and Bridgeport Community Centre Business Cases
City of Kitchener
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| As part of two separate studies, we were retained by the City of Kitchener to identify the type of spaces and programs that should be provided in a new Kingsdale Community Centre and an expanded Bridgeport Community Centre, both of which are operated by neighbourhood associations (with City assistance). Key features of these studies included a comprehensive assessment of the areas' demographic profile, public and stakeholder input to identify gaps and opportunities, the development of space and program priorities with the assistance of an architect, and the establishment of capital and operating costs. In one area, the need for social supports for the under-served neighbourhood was a key factor in establishing the operational model and conceptual plan. | ||
Library & Culture
The City of Mississauga retained our firm to prepare an innovative, forward thinking plan that assists the City in serving its growing older adult population over the coming years. With the City's 55+ population expected to increase by 125% over a twenty-five year period, the City recognized the need to develop innovative approaches to serve not only traditional seniors, but also the 'new senior' (i.e., the more active baby boomers). This study involved several municipal departments, including community services, libraries, and transportation, and is the first of its kind in Canada. Not only was the study built on extensive public consultation (interviews, stakeholder and online surveys, staff workshops, search conferences with community leaders, and public meetings), but it also included a wide-ranging benchmarking exercise aimed at identifying national and international best practices relating to older adult services. The Plan culminated in several recommendations and a specific implementation project aimed at making Mississauga a “senior-friendly” city.