Council has been gathering several nights this week to develop Kingston’s strategic priorities for the next four years. It’s a very different experience from our usual council meetings; we break into smaller groups, write ideas down on post-it notes, engage into brainstorming exercises, and then try to pull everything together into a few overarching themes. There’s still a lot of work left to refine our plan, but I want to share a preview of Council’s emerging priorities. I’ve also included a few projects under each priority that we’ve discussed for this term. It’s going to be a busy four years but we are all very excited to get to work to make Kingston the best it can be!
Housing Affordability:
- Explore tools and incentives to accelerate the construction of new housing
- Expand the variety of housing types and options
- Consider creative affordable housing options like tiny homes
Climate Action:
- Begin acquiring electric buses and find other ways to electrify city fleet
- Expand green spaces, wetland protections and urban tree cover
- Encourage more recycling options, particularly for apartment buildings
Expand Economic and Social Opportunities:
- Develop innovation hubs geared to particular industries where Kingston has a competitive advantage (health care, chemical processing, biotech, etc.)
- Facilitate a downtown campus for St. Lawrence College’s tourism and hospitality program
- Explore the creation of rural business parks north of Highway 401
Create a Healthy and Vibrant Community:
- Develop a new deep water dock for cruise ships and other improvements to the waterfront
- Facilitate the creation of an Indigenous cultural space
- Revitalize brownfield properties along the Montreal Street corridor
- Look into fluoridation of the municipal water supply as a way to improve dental health
Improve Transportation Network:
- Repair and improve roads and sidewalks across the City of Kingston
- Implement Vision Zero road safety plan
- Invest in active transportation options, for cyclists, pedestrians and transit