Shared Spaces: Funding and Managing Libraries and Parks in Tough Times Session 3

IMFG Series on Shared Spaces:
Funding and Managing Libraries and Parks in Tough Times

Sponsored by TD BANK GROUP

Session 3:

A Little Help from Friends: Partnerships for Parks

What new financial tools and collaborative approaches are currently being used among different levels of government, and among public, private, and non-profit sectors to expand and maintain parks and open space in North America?  A broad mix of collaborative funding and governance tools will be surveyed to gain practical and policy insights into those which could be successfully applied in the GTA, including: park trusts, foundations, conservancies and adopt-a-park programs, land use planning, conservation easements, land trusts, partnerships, and other stewardship models.

SPEAKERS

Ed Uhlir, Executive Director, Millennium Park Inc.

Ed Uhlir was appointed Design Director of Millennium Park by Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley in 1998.  In this capacity, he oversaw construction and completion of the 24.5 acre signature downtown park, coordinating the contributions of world-class artists and architects, including Frank Gehry, Jaume Plensa, Anish Kapoor, and the landscape design firm Gustafson Guthrie Nichols. He now serves as the park’s Director of Design, Architecture and Landscape, and the Executive Director of the not-for-profit group Millennium Park Inc.  Previously, Mr. Uhlir was the Director of Research and Planning for the Chicago Park District, and the Park District’s Director of Architecture, Engineering and Planning. A graduate of the School of Architecture at the University of Illinois, Chicago, Mr. Uhlir is a Fellow of the American Institute of Architects, board member and Treasurer of NeighborSpace, and a member of Mayor Daley’s Parks and Open Space Committee. He is also a recognized authority on park development, has lectured to a wide variety of audiences, and is the author of the recently published Ark in the Park, The Story of Lincoln Park Zoo.

Moderator: Dave Harvey, Executive Director, Park People, Toronto

Park People advocates for better parks for all communities by facilitating neighbourhood engagement in their parks, building a network of local community park groups, acting as a watchdog on issues affecting parks, and highlighting the importance of good parks to the social, health, environmental, and economic well-being of all residents of Toronto.

This series of three lectures explores the importance of shared public spaces such as libraries and parks to the health of our city. In an era of fiscal restraint, shared spaces are often vulnerable to funding cuts. To date, however, there has not been extensive public conversation on the long-term solutions to the funding problems. Are there new models of public, private, and hybrid funding to meet these challenges? What are the conditions for success, and what are the pitfalls? Where are innovative models being implemented, and are they viable in the GTA?