Want to be part of new GTR community hub?

By: CONNOR LUCZKA, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

A new review panel with members from the Stratford Public Library, the YMCA of Three Rivers and the City of Stratford will soon be meeting to review organizations wishing to be part of the Grand Trunk renewal (GTR) project’s planned community hub.

Earlier this year, council approved a $15 million commitment to a shared community facility on the grounds of the GTR site. Through partnerships with the Y (committing between $10-15 million) and library (committing between $4-5 million), the project is meant to be a shared space – though the scope and design of the community hub are still yet to be developed, leaving room for other organizations to partner with the city.

Stratford city council approved the review panel and the framework around the community’s participation at its July 13 council meeting. Emily Robson, corporate initiatives lead with the city, told council the review panel is meant to be a fair way to bring on more players that could benefit from the project and contribute to its completion.

“It's really just about understanding where and how we can engage with organizations across the community,” Robson said. “…The role of the review panel is to look at the submissions that come through this process, apply the criteria … to the submissions, and the process safeguards is all about – how are we keeping track of our evaluation process? How are we producing the rationale for how we are making decisions or recommendations? … So it's really about applying that assessment criteria consistently and documenting that rationale.”

As explained in the report, the panel will assess strategic alignment, including mandate alignment, co-location value and role and scope fit. Organizations that demonstrate alignment and wish to be considered as potential foundational partners proceed to the second stage, which will assess capacity and readiness, including resource readiness, operating sustainability and organizational stability. If they passed the first stage but not the second, organizations may not be foundational partners, but could still be involved as a facility user.

In addition to representatives from the library and Y, the panel will have chief administrative officer (CAO) André Morin, a representative from the city’s finance department, city staff experts who will provide information (but will not participate in the assessments) and Mayor Martin Ritsma. Despite Coun. Jo-Dee Burbach putting her name forward to be council’s representative on the panel, council chose Ritsma with only Burbach opposing.

The process will launch soon, according to the report, and be conducted over the summer. Staff intend to report back to council on Sept. 14 with recommendations and potential next steps.

For more information, or for the details of the framework, see the staff report included on the July 13 agenda: https://tinyurl.com/ysspjjw2.