The Big Dig: Is Your BIA Prepared for Streetscape Renewal? John Bowker Vice-Chair Roncesvalles Village BIA
Project milestones Roncesvalles reconstruction Project Announced Scope and budget defined High-level design Detailed design Construction Street reopening
Project milestones Streetscape strategy Advocacy Workshops Community feedback Mitigation strategies Business restoration strategy Roncesvalles reconstruction Project Announced Scope and budget defined High-level design Detailed design Construction Street reopening
Streetscape strategy Streetscape strategy Advocacy Workshops Community feedback Mitigation strategies Business restoration strategy Roncesvalles reconstruction Project Announced Scope and budget defined High-level design Detailed design Construction Street reopening
Streetscape strategy
Advocacy Streetscape strategy Advocacy Workshops Community feedback Mitigation strategies Business restoration strategy Roncesvalles reconstruction Project Announced Scope and budget defined High-level design Detailed design Construction Street reopening
Advocacy
Advocacy Decision-makers are motivated by 1.The desire to avoid headaches 2.The pursuit of a good-news story
Things that cause headaches 1. Ignorance of process 2. Ignorance of existing policies 3. Ignorance of constraints and budgets 4. Indifference to broader community 5. Assholes
Things that relieve headaches 1. Doing your homework 2. Finding common interests 3. Removing obstacles 4. Realistic expectations 5. Engage broader community 6. Be nice
Bad news story
Creating good news stories 1. A story has a beginning, middle and end 2. Manage expectations 3. Learn to pitch to media 4. Inoculate against the grumps 5. Always think of the reader
Advocacy Your neighbours are your best advocates
Workshops Streetscape strategy Advocacy Workshops Community feedback Mitigation strategies Business restoration strategy Roncesvalles reconstruction Project Announced Scope and budget defined High-level design Detailed design Construction Street reopening
Workshops Who is at the table? BIA members community stakeholders designers, planners, architects decision-makers Remember: don t wait!
How will you respond: Nobody consulted me!
What is community input? 1. Local priorities 2. Local conditions 3. Local expertise
One model of community input Councillor Staff?
A better model of community input BIA RAs Decisionmakers! Other groups
Best model of community input? Roncesvalles Renewed (BIA, RAs, other groups) Decisionmakers!!!
Jackpot! Roncesvalles Renewed City stakeholders (TTC, Transportation, Economic Development, Urban Forestry, EMS, Utilities) Decisionmakers!!!!!
Talking to municipalities A good councillor will get everyone talking to each other early
Talking to municipalities A good advocate will keep them talking -- to you and to each other
Trees are infrastructure Trees need air, water & uncompacted soil, not just a hole in the ground Bring in arborists at earliest phases of street design, not after engineering work is done On Roncesvalles: protected trenches prevent soil compaction, with piping to allow water and airflow unit pavers to allow future utility work without jackhammering protective tree guards & grates 12 watering stations
Community Feedback Streetscape strategy Advocacy Workshops Community feedback Mitigation strategies Business restoration strategy Roncesvalles reconstruction Project Announced Scope and budget defined High-level design Detailed design Construction Street reopening
Community feedback Reconcile best practises with local realities
Community feedback 1. Walkthrough 2. Direct outreach 3. Local expertise
Community feedback Wasn t it obvious that this would be a problem?
Mitigation Strategies Streetscape strategy Advocacy Workshops Community feedback Mitigation strategies Business restoration strategy Roncesvalles reconstruction Project Announced Scope and budget defined High-level design Detailed design Construction Street reopening
Mitigation strategies 1. Pain is more bearable when you know what is coming 2. Get it in the RFP and the contract 3. Whining does not increase sales 4. You re in the middle of the story, not the end
Get in the RFP and the contract 1. Dust and noise control 2. Communication & notification 3. Single point of contact on-site 4. Compact staging 5. Work hours 6. Pedestrian movement through worksite 7. Store access at all times 8. Traffic & parking management 9. Preserve bike parking 10. Holiday shopping 11. Subservice utility investigation 12. Contractor pre-qualification 13. Underground utilities notified 14. Milestone payments 15. Incentives for speedy completion 16. Liquidated damages 17. Performance report card 18. Damage claims process 19. Time-based transfers 20. Open for business marketing 21. Native backfill
You can only pick two 1. Fast 2. Cheap 3. Good
Smile
Business restoration Streetscape strategy Advocacy Workshops Community feedback Mitigation strategies Business restoration strategy Roncesvalles reconstruction Project Announced Scope and budget defined High-level design Detailed design Construction Street reopening
Business Restoration Is Roncesvalles still under construction?
Business Restoration
Good luck!