Illuminate Caledon

 8 80 Cities and the Town of Caledon co-created a series of pop-up engagements in coordination with diverse community partners during the Fall of 2022 to better understand what makes Caledon a great place to work, live and play for people of all backgrounds.  

The town of Caledon contracted 8 80 Cities to conduct Inclusive community engagement that centres and supports equity-deserving communities. Spark conversation and generate ideas to support equitable and culturally responsive placemaking in Caledon.  

We used a mix of tools through the community engagement process:

• Virtual Workshop 1 DEI Roundtable (Scoping) 

• Priority Groups Identified from Scoping Workshop 

• Targeted Focus Groups 

• Pop-up Engagements  

• Virtual Workshop 2: DEI ROUNDTABLE + Community Champions 

Engagement Stats:  

• 423 post-it notes written by the community speaking to their vision for a Caledon where people of all backgrounds feel represented, respected, and reflected in public space, programming, and decision-making 

• Of 423 post-it notes, 195 post-it notes mentioned that Caledon is an amazing place to live because of a feeling of community and comradery amongst neighbours 

• Of 423 Post-it notes, 230 spoke to the bounty and beauty of Caledon’s green spaces 

• Over 500 people engaged directly at the engagement pop-ups and an additional 60 individuals engaged at focus groups and meetings with equity-representing organizations. 

Overview of findings by theme – People in Caledon want:  

• More culturally diverse and culturally responsive programming  

• People want Town-run Diwali celebrations and other Town-run cultural events as is done with Canada Day/Victoria Day  

• Vibrant multi-generational places in every neighbourhood  

• People want play and recreational opportunities for people of all ages and currently feel public space is geared towards children.   

• Places and programs that foster social connection across generations and cultures  

• People need connected sidewalks, transit, and walking/biking routes to connect with each other across generations and cultures 

The need for a Cultural Placemaking Master Plan:  

Typical economic development strategies that centre on creative placemaking focus on public art as the means to rejuvenate streetscapes or events to bring tourism dollars into local economies. But cultural placemaking is distinctly place-based and can be used as an economic development strategy that recognizes events as benchmarks of a strategy, rather than the outcome of a strategy. There is great potential in shifting the understanding of events and placemaking activations from an outcome of a strategy to a measurable intervention of a living cultural placemaking master plan.