Process

To us, the most rewarding planning outcomes bring together a compelling idea, a workable strategy and people committed to seeing it through. For 40 years, Urban Strategies has integrated planning, design and engagement to help make those outcomes possible. 

Our process begins with understanding a place and the people who use it. Policy, infrastructure, ownership and environmental conditions are considered alongside local knowledge and community priorities. Workshops, design charrettes, neighbourhood walks and hands-on modelling allow us to test ideas and shape a shared direction.

At Alexandra Park, deep and committed engagement helped establish relationships that supported planning over many years. At Jane Finch Mall, the planning and engagement processes were designed to center historically excluded perspectives into decisions about a site central to community life. Both projects have been recognized with international awards.  

Visualization has expanded the conversation. Our digital model of Toronto, maintained since 2003, helps teams assess development in context and communicate the implications of change. Our bespoke GIS-enabled engagement tool Campus Compass and Community Compass, developed in 2016, enabled participants to map their experiences and ideas, revealing relationships between public experience and particular places.

Integrating different engagement methods strengthens collaboration among clients, communities, public agencies and consultant teams, helping shape plans that can adapt to changing conditions throughout implementation. As tools evolve, we continue to explore creative ways to make planning more accessible and decisions better informed. We look to the decades ahead with a strong foundation of experience and a continuing appetite for better ways to listen, design and turn shared ambitions into action.