Culture, Economy, Community: A Cultural Plan for Chatham-Kent

Jointly funded by

Municipality of Chatham-Kent

Community Futures Development Corporation of Chatham-Kent

Federal Department of Cultural Arts and Heritage

To view the complete document visit chatham-kent.ca

Municipality of Chatham-Kent

• Amalgamated in 1998• 23 incorporated towns, villages and townships

into one• 256 elected officials to 18• Second largest municipal land mass – 2,494 sq.

kilometres, 105 kms x 72 kms, 12th largest in Canada

• One hour from Windsor, Sarnia and London• 56 internal business units, not including PUC

and C-K Energy• Inventory of 825 bridges, 15,000 plus culverts

Boring or BeautifulIts Authentic

• Our mission: We work in partnership with business, all levels of government and the community at the large, to actively promote, encourage and facilitate community economic development in Chatham-Kent

• Federally funded by Industry Canada, Fed Nor• Serving rural communities of less than 40,000

population• 61 CFDC’s in Ontario (5 are Native)

Decision to EmbarkStrategic Planning –

CFDC’s mandated by Industry Canada to do strategic planning. Initial consultation with Board identified Culture/Tourism and Agriculture as a projected focus of community economic development activities

The Discovery - Municipal Cultural Forums

The Promotion – Cultural planning makes economic sense for a community in transition – focus on quality of life and development will follow as a logical outcome

Grant opportunity – ‘go for it!’ – NOTE: Council would not have pursued the Cultural Mapping process without partnership funding

Why Now in C-K

• After 10 years with great progress in meeting infrastructure needs i.e. roads, water, sewer, energy, bridges – limited dollars spent on quality of life issues

• Loss of local community identity and pride• 2 logos, no branding, no common identity• Post amalgamation - need to come together for

a common goal• Culture is a unifier• Economic Development issues (Smokestacks! Perceived

Union mentality)

Initial Challenges

• Grant approval came before Council’s strategic planning sessions

• Buy in from the bottom up, management not convinced

• Budget concerns override strategic priorities• Many ‘don’t get it!’ – not only cultural planning

but strategic planning• Breaking down the silos difficult, internal and

community wide

The Difference of our Cultural Mapping Project

• Had to be concrete, focus on ‘economy’

• Second consultant, Steven Thorne, assessed C-K for cultural tourism opportunities

• “Culture-nomics” – Culture Led Economic Development

• Completed Mapping and a comprehensive Cultural Masterplan

Challenges of the Process

• More staff time required than anticipated• IT/GIS department not included in the

onset • Volunteer vs. staff, who is going to be

responsible in the long term to implement• Buy in from senior management and Ec

Dev• Leadership• Concept not truly understood by majority

Desired Outcomes

• Solve Identity, branding, signage • Tourism strategy, Steven Thorne, implement ideas for

market development of tourist opportunities • Develop a culture of thinking strategically and implement

accordingly, proactive vs. reactive • Establish a non-political mechanism for Communities to

work together while maintaining their individuality • Create solid partnerships between business, the not-for-

profit sector and funding partners to build a community movement to implement Cultural Plan

• Recognition from Economic Development Department that Cultural development is economic development

Create C-K3 Part Program

• Create C-K Consortium

• 5 Cultural Action Teams – CATs

• Create C-K Strategic Summit

Design your organization to fit your individual needs

Ongoing Challenges

• Leadership - keeping momentum • Beaurocracy – governments move too

slowly for the volunteer sector• Politics – keeping focussed on the big

picture • Resources – continued financial support

for staff (based on a political budget process)

• Perception of Culture – ‘elitism’ vs. ‘culture-nomics’

“Low Hanging Fruit’

• ‘ArtSpace’ -new artist co-op in downtown Chatham, joint partnership of Thames Art Gallery, CFDC, a local entrepreneur and artist’s

• ‘Tecumseh Parkway’ – a 1812 legacy project

• ‘Promised Land’ – a 5 year, 5 million dollar research project on Black History

• Heritage Tax relief bylaw; Church inventory• Ridgetown Rejuvenation Committee • Capital Theatre funding secure • Signage strategy – consultant hired• CATS – organized and active

If I had to do it all over again….

• Formed a strong cross departmental team i.e. Oakville

• Worked harder on educating Council• Appointed members to interim committee prior to

the end of the project i.e.. Oxford• Found corporate partners in the beginning• Had a communication person (volunteer or staff)

educating and promoting the concept • Had Ec-Dev firmly on side before going forward

Recession = Opportunity

• Acting strategically, using a Cultural Masterplan, municipalities have an opportunity to ‘re-tool’ their economic base

• “Quality of life is good economics, focus on the real fundamentals that make your community attractive to corporations.” Dr. Mark Partridge, Swank Professor in Rural-Urban Policy, Ohio State University

Thank you

Anne Gilbertannegilbert@chatham-kent.ca

Chair, Community Futures DevelopmentCorporation of Chatham-Kent

Councillor, Ward 6, ChathamMunicipality of Chatham-Kent

519-676-4333