Ontario
Population: 137,420
- Waterloo is above average for percentage of parkland that is natural area at 56%.
- Waterloo has an above average percentage of parkland protected as environmentally significant at 43%.
- Waterloo is one of 50% of cities with a community park group program.
- As a way to support local artists, Waterloo commissioned 24 original artworks to display along the Waterloo Park Promenade in 2021.
- Waterloo’s Trail Mix program brought the sound of local musicians to trails in the city by placing scannable QR codes so people could listen on their phones as they hiked.
- The city’s Neighbourhood Group has developed offerings such as matching grants to provide funding for resident-led initiatives, and a Block Connectors program to provide resources to residents to lead community gathering initiatives and strengthen neighbourhood ties.
6.9
ha parkland per 1000 people
946 ha of total parkland
56%
of total parkland is natural area
530 total ha
43%
of parkland is environmentally significant/protected
405 total ha
15%
of total city land is parkland
6400 ha of total city area
1
dog parks
6
Community gardens/urban farms
Mixed
Parkland provision goal (distance to park / ha per 1000 people)
Neighbourhood parks: 1ha / 1000 people General parkland: 5 ha / 1000 people
1.3
1volunteers / 1000 people
175 total
3
community park groups
No
Policy to waive permit fees for groups with financial need.
$55
Parks operating budget per person
$7,490,894 total
$6,808,000
Total parks capital budget
5%
Provincially legislated tools available for parkland dedication, acquisition and/or development
Municipalities are able to require up to 5% of the land area of a residential development for parkland or, through an alternate rate bylaw, one hectare in land per 300 units or the equivalent in cash-in-lieu of one hectare per 500 units. Municipalities are also able to require 2% of commercial or non-residential development for parkland or the equivalent in cash-in-lieu. Municipalities may also fund eligible parks improvements through Development Charges and may choose to collect funding for parkland through a Community Benefits Charge, but overlap between these tools must be avoided.
¹Decrease from last year due to COVID-19.
