A great neighbourhood is even better when everyone has the opportunity to get involved in some way. If you have an idea for something you would like to see happen in the neighbourhood in the next year, now is the time put it in to action. Or maybe you want to get involved and help others realize their ideas.
Either way, mark Monday November 6 on your calendar. We’re meeting at McCabe in Downtown Kitchener… and there will be food! More details to come!
Your Midtown KW Neighbourhood 
I find McCabes distasteful to put it mildly. The dress and “empty headed” presentation of young female staff carefully ferreted from the community prioritising their body shape and willingness to accept the credo of management, vulgar. I’m not saying the staff are vulgar but the tone of management is and quite misogynist at that. That said, I would like to contribute https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o6vCYwsvwu0 , a lecture by Toby Hemenway promoting urban permaculture and his new book about the same.
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Hi Geoffrey,
Thanks for your feedback about the location. There are very few places for a group to gather within a short walking distance of our neighbourhood where we can have food & drink and a space to gather 20-30 people. We would love any suggestions for future gatherings!
Happy to share an idea at the ‘make it happen’ event on your behalf. Can you be more specific about what you have in mind so that someone can add it to the list that gets shared at the event?
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Hi Juanita
That is unfortunate. I’d thought maybe the Duke in the tannery complex might work as the difference in distance is trivial. That said, I’m not fond of chains. One would think with the amount of redevelopment on King a site would open between Victoria and Union.
Traffic calming is a never ending issue. About the 10 min mark Toby presents how a Portland Oregon community overcame aggressive driving issues despite initial resistance from Portland Transportation by winning over the mayor with a low cost / no cost to the city and community inclusive solution. That specific solution will not work for the Weber St section between Wellington and Wilhelm which has become an impromptu demolition derby site since re-opening, but provides a model how a community can speak up to overcome the tyranny of a de-facto 80 kph zone in an area which barely tolerates 50 kph despite the extra wide lanes.
I have communicated with Waterloo Region traffic planners asking for as little as speed limit signage and radar traps. I was rebuffed. The same planners admitted the pedestrian infrastructure through the area did not meet standard, ie. the MUP was 2.5 m when code requires 3m, the east side sidewalks between Water and Ontario are hazardously narrow and impassible by wheelchair, ditto sidewalks between Queen and Frederick on the west side of Weber. We further discussed pedestrian infrastructure in other areas of the city which had been removed and he was for the most part dismissive of my concerns and unwilling to consider accomodation for pedestrians.
This de-facto 80 kph zone on Weber spills over onto adjoining side streets. Louisa has become a rat run. Here, a solution as demonstrated in the video may work at Louisa and Duke IF it is possible to get residents onside.
On another note, Kitchener and the Region still accept and by policy encourage “cosmetic pesticide spraying”. This practice is destructive to soils as it destroys soil microbiology. Furthermore it is hazardous to people and pets who walk past the same properties as these have repeatedly been identified as being at minimum low level carcinogens. On the other hand, permaculture recognises weeds, disease and pests are symptomatic of soil deficiencies and these generally won’t tolerate healthy soils or can be eradicated by more sustainable practices. https://richsoil.com/lawn-care.jsp should be required reading for those who insist on maintaining weed non-native turfgrass species like your neighbour across the street who polluted neighbourhood residents, cats, dogs and birds with their “easy” solution to dandelions.
Toronto banned “cosmetic pesticides” more than a decade ago. The sky has not fallen. Can we consider lobbying for that here?
On that note we need to lobby the city to reconsider its virulent weed list. Dandelion, plantain and lambs quarters as well as the amaranth family are food and medicine. Turfgrass is a useless blight but makes for comfortable footing when combined with supporting plants as outlined in the lawn-care article. Grass has its place and that shouldn’t be every private yard. Should the city proceed with residents desire for fruit trees in Uniroyal-Goodrich, a better nitrogen fixer than turfgrass will be required for the trees to fruit upon maturity. Legume understories would definitely help. “Chop and drop” would be the method of maintenance. Jeff Lawton demonstrates this in any number of permaculture videos available on youtube.
Greenery, particularly birch and conifers have been demonstrated to trap and drop particulate as well as ingest CO2 air pollution. To that end, it seems obscene the Region has flowering overgrowth confined to its planting beds along Weber St ripped up by contractors while refusing to plant trees which would provide motorists a greater sense of speed and enact traffic calming. These large shrubs dampen noise, calm traffic and help control pollution, all contributing to a more healthful pedestrian environment.
I don’t know where to begin but have taken my issues to our neighbourhood concillor and Region traffic. An education program appears to be indicated by responses but I am burned out. A grassroots rebellion might just affect change.
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I need to add I love your garden.
May it be the inspiration to others that it brought peace for me.
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