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Consultation has concluded
After consultation with stakeholder groups and the public City staff have prepared a draft Horticulture Management Plan for presentation to City Council. The plan’s primary goal is to outline directions for improvement and evolution of horticultural assets — such as gardens and floral displays — while ensuring they are maintained in a way that is both financially sustainable and environmentally friendly. The City operates and maintains hundreds of horticultural assets ranging from floral displays to pollinator gardens and beehive locations to community gardens.
Guiding Principles
The plan outlines 10 guiding principles that will guide decisions and actions related to the management, maintenance and expansion of horticulture assets in the years to come.
Plan, provide and maintain horticultural assets in an environmentally responsible manner for future generations
Embrace natural surroundings and build on the opportunities they provide through programming options and promotion of environmental initiatives
Guiding Principle No. 2 – Encourage Community Partnerships:
Recognize the role horticulture plays in promoting healthy lifestyle and social interaction
Provide support to ensure services are delivered, maintained and enhanced
Prioritize initiatives that leverage community partnerships and engagement to achieve goals established in the HMP
Guiding Principle No. 3 – Ensure Horticulture Distribution is City Wide:
Provide horticultural displays and community gardens that are distributed City wide to ensure access to residents in all wards
Guiding Principle No. 4 – Efficient and Effective Service Levels:
Ensure required tools, resources and supports are available for efficient and effective HMP implementation
Prioritize and implement new maintenance schedules to increase efficiencies and effectiveness
Ensure sustainable funding for new or revitalized assets
Guiding Principle No. 5 – Embrace History of Beautification:
Continue to embrace the Garden City’s long history of beautification including historic sites, unique geographical features and newer landscape installations
Guiding Principle No. 6 – Enhance Community Education:
Continue to recognize the role played by the City in enhancing community horticultural education and environmentally friendly practices
Guiding Principle No. 7 – Leadership in Horticultural Practices / Trends for Climate Change Adaptation:
Provide the public with ideas and options for environmental sustainability
Explore innovative ideas; emerging trends and technologies; new approaches and best practices across the industry
Continue to champion native species and help reduce the impacts of invasive plants
Guiding Principle No. 9 – Sustainable Investment in Horticulture Infrastructure and Operations:
Provide effective asset management to ensure the long-term availability and sustainability of horticultural infrastructure
Achieve best value from available capital funding resources
Champion design and implementation strategies reducing carbon footprint, conserving resources and improving operational requirements
Guiding Principle No. 10 – Work With our Community for our Community:
Collaborate with committees of Council, community groups, stakeholders and the public to pursue horticultural principles in an innovative and safe manner which is both financially and environmentally sustainable for residents
Implementation
The plan outlines 54 short-, medium-, long-term and ongoing action items action items.
While the plan outlines some opportunities to convert some resource-intensive displays into environmentally friendly naturalized areas, it also identifies high-traffic prestige areas for continued plantings focused on a more manicured presentation.
Please watch the video presentation below for more information, or read the draft plan.
Tell us what you think via the Q&A tool below. Feel free to let us know what you like, what could be added or ask a question and staff will get back to you. Public engagement will remain open until March 17, 2022.
After consultation with stakeholder groups and the public City staff have prepared a draft Horticulture Management Plan for presentation to City Council. The plan’s primary goal is to outline directions for improvement and evolution of horticultural assets — such as gardens and floral displays — while ensuring they are maintained in a way that is both financially sustainable and environmentally friendly. The City operates and maintains hundreds of horticultural assets ranging from floral displays to pollinator gardens and beehive locations to community gardens.
Guiding Principles
The plan outlines 10 guiding principles that will guide decisions and actions related to the management, maintenance and expansion of horticulture assets in the years to come.
Plan, provide and maintain horticultural assets in an environmentally responsible manner for future generations
Embrace natural surroundings and build on the opportunities they provide through programming options and promotion of environmental initiatives
Guiding Principle No. 2 – Encourage Community Partnerships:
Recognize the role horticulture plays in promoting healthy lifestyle and social interaction
Provide support to ensure services are delivered, maintained and enhanced
Prioritize initiatives that leverage community partnerships and engagement to achieve goals established in the HMP
Guiding Principle No. 3 – Ensure Horticulture Distribution is City Wide:
Provide horticultural displays and community gardens that are distributed City wide to ensure access to residents in all wards
Guiding Principle No. 4 – Efficient and Effective Service Levels:
Ensure required tools, resources and supports are available for efficient and effective HMP implementation
Prioritize and implement new maintenance schedules to increase efficiencies and effectiveness
Ensure sustainable funding for new or revitalized assets
Guiding Principle No. 5 – Embrace History of Beautification:
Continue to embrace the Garden City’s long history of beautification including historic sites, unique geographical features and newer landscape installations
Guiding Principle No. 6 – Enhance Community Education:
Continue to recognize the role played by the City in enhancing community horticultural education and environmentally friendly practices
Guiding Principle No. 7 – Leadership in Horticultural Practices / Trends for Climate Change Adaptation:
Provide the public with ideas and options for environmental sustainability
Explore innovative ideas; emerging trends and technologies; new approaches and best practices across the industry
Continue to champion native species and help reduce the impacts of invasive plants
Guiding Principle No. 9 – Sustainable Investment in Horticulture Infrastructure and Operations:
Provide effective asset management to ensure the long-term availability and sustainability of horticultural infrastructure
Achieve best value from available capital funding resources
Champion design and implementation strategies reducing carbon footprint, conserving resources and improving operational requirements
Guiding Principle No. 10 – Work With our Community for our Community:
Collaborate with committees of Council, community groups, stakeholders and the public to pursue horticultural principles in an innovative and safe manner which is both financially and environmentally sustainable for residents
Implementation
The plan outlines 54 short-, medium-, long-term and ongoing action items action items.
While the plan outlines some opportunities to convert some resource-intensive displays into environmentally friendly naturalized areas, it also identifies high-traffic prestige areas for continued plantings focused on a more manicured presentation.
Please watch the video presentation below for more information, or read the draft plan.
Tell us what you think via the Q&A tool below. Feel free to let us know what you like, what could be added or ask a question and staff will get back to you. Public engagement will remain open until March 17, 2022.
Provide feedback or ask questions about the plan before March 17. Staff will review all questions and answer if able.
Share Where is the commitment/goal to a 30% tree canopy? There are hundreds and hundreds of locations (if not thousands) along boulevards alone that could be/should be planted. For example, several years ago, I identified (and informed RCS of) 40+ sites along the residential section of Bunting Road missing a street tree. The city has declared a climate emergency yet has not been agressive enough in implementing one of the best means to combat climate change... planting shade trees. on FacebookShare Where is the commitment/goal to a 30% tree canopy? There are hundreds and hundreds of locations (if not thousands) along boulevards alone that could be/should be planted. For example, several years ago, I identified (and informed RCS of) 40+ sites along the residential section of Bunting Road missing a street tree. The city has declared a climate emergency yet has not been agressive enough in implementing one of the best means to combat climate change... planting shade trees. on TwitterShare Where is the commitment/goal to a 30% tree canopy? There are hundreds and hundreds of locations (if not thousands) along boulevards alone that could be/should be planted. For example, several years ago, I identified (and informed RCS of) 40+ sites along the residential section of Bunting Road missing a street tree. The city has declared a climate emergency yet has not been agressive enough in implementing one of the best means to combat climate change... planting shade trees. on LinkedinEmail Where is the commitment/goal to a 30% tree canopy? There are hundreds and hundreds of locations (if not thousands) along boulevards alone that could be/should be planted. For example, several years ago, I identified (and informed RCS of) 40+ sites along the residential section of Bunting Road missing a street tree. The city has declared a climate emergency yet has not been agressive enough in implementing one of the best means to combat climate change... planting shade trees. link
Where is the commitment/goal to a 30% tree canopy? There are hundreds and hundreds of locations (if not thousands) along boulevards alone that could be/should be planted. For example, several years ago, I identified (and informed RCS of) 40+ sites along the residential section of Bunting Road missing a street tree. The city has declared a climate emergency yet has not been agressive enough in implementing one of the best means to combat climate change... planting shade trees.
Peter Thompstone
asked
over 2 years ago
Hey Peter, thanks for reaching out. We remain committed to our goal of a 30 per cent urban canopy under our Urban Forestry Management Plan. The reason you are not seeing it here is that tree plantings are guided by the forestry plan, the Horticulture Management Plan works in concert with the forestry plan, with the horticulture plan covering more decorative assets such as gardens and hanging baskets. You can read the full Urban Forestry Management Plan at https://www.stcatharines.ca/en/home-property-and-environment/resources/Urban-Forestry-Management-Plan.pdf.
The two plans above are complimentary to other planning documents, such as our Climate Adaptation Plan, which identifies the importance of meeting targets identified in the Urban Forestry Management Plan in our efforts to adapt to and mitigate Climate Change.
We appreciate the feedback, all the best.
Share Hello! The draft HMP looks wonderful. I'm wondering if the City of St. Catharines is actually a certified Bee City, as the documentation hasn't been updated since 2017.
Thank you on FacebookShare Hello! The draft HMP looks wonderful. I'm wondering if the City of St. Catharines is actually a certified Bee City, as the documentation hasn't been updated since 2017.
Thank you on TwitterShare Hello! The draft HMP looks wonderful. I'm wondering if the City of St. Catharines is actually a certified Bee City, as the documentation hasn't been updated since 2017.
Thank you on LinkedinEmail Hello! The draft HMP looks wonderful. I'm wondering if the City of St. Catharines is actually a certified Bee City, as the documentation hasn't been updated since 2017.
Thank you link
Hello! The draft HMP looks wonderful. I'm wondering if the City of St. Catharines is actually a certified Bee City, as the documentation hasn't been updated since 2017.
Thank you
Melisa Parkins
asked
over 2 years ago
Hi Melisa,
Thanks so much for taking the time to review the horticulture management plan!
To answer your question, yes we are a certified Bee City through Bee City Canada and have been since our official designation in 2017. We have made a commitment as a City to protect pollinators and their habitats. We continue to explore new areas for bee hive installations, are always looking to plant native pollinator friendly plants wherever possible and to educate our residents on the importance of protecting pollinators in our community.
