OTTAWA, Ontario – June 7, 2016. The Canadian Institute of Planners has awarded planning projects in Ottawa, Winnipeg, Cowichan Valley, and Strathcona County an Award for Planning Excellence. The Institute also bestowed an Award of Merit to seven planning projects.
Through its Awards for Planning Excellence, the Canadian Institute of Planners recognizes planning projects for their excellence, innovation, impact on the profession, implementation potential and overall presentation. This year’s projects range from master planning to sustainable re-development.
Click here for project descriptions and downloadable images.
“On behalf of the Canadian planning community, I congratulate the professionals who developed these exceptional projects,” said Hazel Christy, President of the Canadian Institute of Planners. “I look forward to seeing the positive and lasting impact these projects have on the communities and planning profession.”
In 2016, 55 projects were submitted for consideration, across thirteen categories, by the Award for Planning Excellence jury of planning professionals from across the country. The recipients will be formally recognized at the joint Canadian Institute of Planners and L’Ordre des urbanistes du Québec’s national planning conference, Accent on Planning, held in Quebec City on July 7, 2016.
The 2016 Award for Planning Excellence Winners:
Aboriginal Community Planning and Development
Cowichan Tribes Community Transportation and Mobility Plan (Cowichan Valley, BC)
Awarded to: EcoPlan International and Cowichan Tribes
“…The incredible success of this Transportation and Mobility Plan, in spite of obstacles provides a much-needed example of how a strategic, feasibility-focused approach to planning can enable First Nations to build and leverage partnerships and address major challenges…”
Neighbourhood Planning
Zibi, Domtar Lands Re-development (Ottawa, ON)
Awarded to: FOTENN Planning + Design, Windmill Development Group, and Perkins + Will
“ZIBI is an innovative and inspirational plan which sets out a comprehensive sustainable vision for the redevelopment of the DOMTAR lands on the Ottawa River.”
Rural / Small Town Planning
Strathcona County Agriculture Master Plan (Strathcona County, AB)
Awarded to: Strathcona County, Stantec Consulting, and Toma & Bouma Management Consultants
“The Strathcona County Agriculture Master Plan is an example of changing the focus of land development from continued urban sprawl to recognition of the importance of sustainable agricultural economy…The plan is easily understood, the plan is highly transferrable and has broad application across the country where the urban rural divide is paramount.”
Sustainable Mobility, Transportation, and Infrastructure
Winnipeg Pedestrian and Cycling Strategies (Winnipeg, MB)
Awarded to: Urban Systems and the City of Winnipeg
“Winnipeg’s Pedestrian and Cycling Strategy does an excellent job of linking existing transportation plans, area plans, and challenges facing a ‘winter city’ with sustainable mobility policies.”
Urban Design
University of Ottawa Design Guidelines and Precinct Plans (Ottawa, ON)
Awarded to: Urban Strategies Inc. and the University of Ottawa
“Highlights of these guidelines and plans included design guidelines tailored to each precinct and specific sites within each precinct, a project assessment checklist to ensure future project touch on all the right bases and a sophisticated use of digital base mapping and 3D modelling that have been used wisely to animate specific ideas or directions.”
The 2016 Award of Merit Winners:
Planning Publications
Toronto Pearson: Growth, Connectivity, Capacity (Toronto, ON)
Awarded to: Urban Strategies Inc. and the Greater Toronto Airports Authority
“This white paper, slim in size, punches well above its weight, in examining the importance of Toronto Pearson Airport, both in terms of its role in regional transportation infrastructure and the impact it has on the local economy. It highlighted the urgency in creating a comprehensive plan and used statistics to solidify that need.”
New and Emerging Planning Initiatives
Community Lifecycle Infrastructure Costing (CLIC) Tool (Prince George, BC)
Awarded to: Ministry of Community, Sport and Cultural Development, the City of Prince George and Stantec Consulting
“Local governments in Canada are often faced with a huge infrastructure deficit…This model is an excel-based tool that was developed to understand the long-term financial implications of land development decisions…This methodology enables municipalities to consider the 100 year implications of their decisions.”
Planning Practice Project
No. 264 Progressive Partnership, Innovative Redevelopment (The Kensington Legion Site) (Calgary, AB)
Awarded to: Truman Developments, CivicWorks Planning + Design, Intelligent Futures, and S2 Architecture
“The jury appreciated how community concerns were addressed in the submission, appreciated the ‘By the Number’ summaries throughout the document and the demonstration of the evolution of the design. The jury also commends the submission for its overall graphic quality and potential transferability to other Legion sites across the country.”
City and Regional Planning
Fredericton City Centre Plan (Fredericton, NB)
Awarded to: The Planning Partnership
“The Fredericton City Centre Plan is a guide to future development in the downtown core of New Brunswick’s capital city… Highlights of the Plan include direction for specific districts and heritage landscapes, a useful 3D model, and implementation measures that include a design review board, bonus heights, and the requirement to pre-consult with staff before submitting a development application.”
International Development
Bhubaneswar Smart City Strategy (Toronto, ON)
Awarded to: Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation, IBI Group, and Jones Lang LaSalle
“The Jury viewed this submission as an excellent example of a model of sustainable urbanization that has the transformative potential to provide citizens with prosperity, safety, and equity. The innovation factor was introduced in the Strategic Plan by using best globally practices to fit into the local context.”
Urban Design
Downtown Grande Prairie Infrastructure Assessment, Streetscape Enhancement, and Rehabilitation Project (Grande Prairie, AB)
Awarded to: The City of Grande Prairie, NAK Design Strategies, Intelligent Futures, and Morrison Hershfield
“The Downtown Infrastructure Assessment, Streetscape Enhancement and Rehabilitation Project is being recognized with an Award of Merit for its comprehensive and contextual approach to downtown improvements in Grande Prairie. The jury recognized this as an important project for the City of Grande Prairie’s revitalization of downtown.”
Sustainable Mobility, Transportation, and Infrastructure
TORONTO 2015 Pan Am/Parapan Am Games Transportation Plan (Toronto, ON)
Awarded to: Ministry of Transportation Ontario and IBI Group
“The Toronto 2015 Pan AM/Parapan AM Games were one of the largest multi-sport events held in Canada with over 30 venues across the Greater Golden Horseshoe Area of Southern Ontario. Providing a positive and safe travel experience for athletes and spectators, while not disrupting commerce, was critical to the success of the games and a major undertaking both in terms of moving people and interagency coordination.”
About the Canadian Institute of Planners
The Canadian Institute of Planners (CIP) works on behalf of over 6,300 planning professionals nationally, and has served as the voice of Canada’s planning community since 1919. Planners safeguard the health and well-being of urban and rural communities, by addressing the use of land, resources, facilities, and services with consideration to physical, economic, and social efficiency. Our members work in both the public service and the private sector, across fields such as land use planning, environmental resource management, land development, heritage conservation, social planning, indigenous communities planning, transportation planning, and economic development. Learn more about CIP and the role of planners at cip-icu.ca.
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About the Awards for Planning Excellence
The Canadian Institute of Planners recognizes planning projects for their excellence, innovation, impact on the profession, implementation potential and overall presentation. This program began in 1983 and has grown to include thirteen award categories. A jury of ten planning professionals from the public and private sector, representing every region, evaluate submissions against a strict criteria. Click here to see past Award recipients, and read a full description of each Award category here.
Categories include Aboriginal Community Planning and Development; City and Regional Planning; International Planning; Natural Systems Planning; Neighbourhood Planning; New and Emerging Planning Initiatives; Planning Practice, Planning Publications and Media; Recreation Planning; Rural / Small Town Planning; Social Planning; Sustainable Mobility, Transportation, and Infrastructure; and Urban Design.
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mbrynkus@cip-icu.ca
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