Participatory Planning

Participatory planning is an approach to designing active, livable cities, which makes urban planning accessible, community-driven, and fun. It is grounded in the belief that blending local knowledge and expert knowledge leads to strong outcomes. We work on the neighbourhood scale, and take an integrated view of planning. Since land use, urban design, architecture, transportation infrastructure, and placemaking all inform residents’ experiences of their neighbourhoods, we involve professionals across these disciplines. We also integrate a health equity lens into our work, and acknowledge the link between participatory planning processes, built environment outcomes, and public health. Each community has a unique, citizen-driven workplan developed in collaboration with various local partners, but our participatory planning approach employs a common methodology. Learn about this approach by exploring the process below!

The rest is in your hands. The time has come to invite citizens to define the future of their neighbourhoods!

Establish a partnership with local stakeholders and lay out an action plan.

Create a diagnostic portrait of the use of public space.

Identify design scenarios that will meet needs and resolve issues.

With the various stakeholders, validate and improve upon the developed solutions.

Implement the design solutions and advocate for citizen visions. 

Celebrate the project’s accomplishments!