Londoners are being asked to put on their thinking caps and dream up ways to spend $250,000 of city money for grassroots initiatives that enhance the community.
Idea submissions for the Neighbourhood Decision Making project open Friday. Residents can pitch ideas on anything from planting public gardens, creating public art, or hosting a neighbourhood event, anything that would benefit the community. City staff will then vet and compile the ideas into a list that residents will vote on in the near future.
"I'm very excited about the project because it will empower residents to really shape their neighbourhoods, their parks, their public spaces, and really make them their own," said Councillor Josh Morgan, who championed last year's pilot project of the same name.
Through the pilot project, which was limited to Ward 13 and the Medway-area, residents proposed ideas such as a beach volleyball court, a community apple press for neighbours to make cider, and ball park bleachers. One of the winning submissions for a little neighbourhood park library was pitched by an 8-year-old girl.
The city will be divided into five regions with each receiving an even split of the cash -- $50,000.
"That doesn't all need to be spent on one project. Depending on what residents vote on, multiple ideas could be funded" said Morgan. "In fact, in the pilot project we saw three projects approved at $15,000 and that was great because they ranged $11,000 to $800 and the community came out and supported them for the ideas and not the dollar amounts."
Morgan stresses the success of the program hinges on public participation.
"This was successful in the pilot stage because we had so many residents taking part. This will be successful only if people come up with ideas and they come out to support them," said Morgan. "It is really passing the torch to Londoners to improve their communities and enabling them to do so. It requires their participation so I encourage everyone to do so."
Once winning ideas are named, city staff will work with the residents who submitted them to implement them in their neighbourhood.
Information on how to submit an idea for the Neighbourhood Decision Making project can be found here.
