Town of Orangeville Recreation and Parks Master Plan

Mehak, Kelly teamed with thinc design to prepare this Plan. Orangeville has a population of 28,900, and is densely developed relative to surrounding municipalities, which are largely rural. The Town, therefore, provides recreation services to a regional market.
This project involved extensive consultation including an initial ‘setting the course’ workshop with Town staff, individual interviews with Council and senior staff, focus groups with community agencies, sports groups and clubs, and three surveys (random telephone and online household, and user group). The household surveys generated close to 1,000 responses, including input from those in surrounding communities. Two public open houses were held, and a third was hosted online for community review of the draft Plan during the initial stages of the COVID-19 pandemic when in-person gatherings were precluded.
The Plan assessed needs and provided recommendations on community recreation and culture programming, facilities, and parks to serve residents, area non-residents and visitors. It included a concept design for a downtown event precinct. The provision of future parks and facilities anticipated the scarcity of large undeveloped parcels of municipal land in a growing community. The municipality’s role in service delivery was reviewed and clarified.