Climate change worries spark new river design challenge in Stratford, Ont.
A new design challenge is inviting Stratford, Ont., residents to play a part in rethinking the spaces and infrastructure around the city and protecting their river from further climate change damage.
Frequent, harsher storms and floods have caused ongoing erosion of the Avon River’s shoreline, a 2024 report from the Upper Thames River Conservation Authority says. The report says heavy rainfalls have also caused more pollutants to drain into the water, leading to increased E. coli and phosphorus levels.
Additionally, last summer, the river’s water levels plummeted after a piece of debris was caught in its dam, causing the gates to remain open for nearly a week, affecting wildlife in the river.
These environmental struggles are some of the reasons behind Flowing Futures: Avon River Design Challenge, a contest that aims to engage with people in the city as they reimagine their downtown infrastructure surrounding the river.
“The Avon River is really one of Stratford’s most important natural and cultural spaces, but like many urban rivers across Ontario — really across the country — it raises urgent questions about climate resilience, ecological health and really about the future public space,” Mark Rosenfeld told CBC K-W’s The Morning Edition with host Craig Norris.
Rosenfeld is the founding director of the Provocation Ideas Festival, a Stratford-based arts and ideas festival, and project lead for the challenge. He launched Flowing Futures on April 2 to encourage people to think about the future of the river.
“The question really becomes, how do we care for the river? Not simply as scenery but as something that needs stewardship, adaptation and imagination,” Rosenfeld said.
Challenge open to everyone
The design challenge was created in partnership with the public library, riverside tourist attractions in the city and urban development groups and is supported by the city’s destination development fund.
The challenge is open to all in the Stratford area and Rosenfeld encourages everyone to participate, even if they aren’t experts. Residents can submit big or small proposals, from simple ideas or sketches to complex concepts for artwork and urban planning.
Rosenfeld’s keyword for participants is: Imagination.
“[Flowing Futures] asks people to imagine not only what the Avon River is today, but what it could become environmentally, culturally and in a shared public space,” Rosenfeld said.
Experts in urban design, art and the environment will be leading workshops and mentorship sessions throughout the year to help support participants as they develop their proposed ideas. In October, there will be a public exhibition to showcase the top projects chosen by a comprehensive jury.
Protect and reimagine
At the University of Waterloo, six fourth-year urban design students are looking to make their mark on the Avon River through the contest, including Khalil Heron.
“A big goal of ours is to better connect people in Stratford to the river to help them kind of think more about it, learn about its history and how it’s threatened so they can be invested in its future and protecting it,’ Heron told CBC Radio.
Heron and his group submitted an extensive proposal for the river that includes a mix of environmental upgrades, communal spaces for all ages and historical and Indigenous art exhibitions.
They are focused on making the river accessible to all and proposed adding more paved pathways along the river. In terms of rejuvenating its natural ecosystem, they recommended stabilizing the eroding shoreline and planting more native species to add to the ecological health of the riverbank.
Rosenfeld supervised the students as they worked on this plan. He hopes that the contest will encourage residents of all ages to think responsibly and creatively about the river.
“What we wanted to do is create a project that asks not only how do we preserve the river, but how might we reimagine its future?” says Rosenfeld.
The challenge will be accepting responses until May 30.