160114 Beautification Working GroupTown of Tillsonburg
Beautification Working Group
Annex Meeting Room, Tillsonburg Town Centre Mall
Report of January 14th, 2016 Meeting
1. Attending: Christine Nagy, Matt Fenn, Corey Hill, Paul DeCloet, Sue Saelens,
Marian Smith, Penny Esseltine, John Kirkland
Regrets: Virginia Armstrong
Absent: Wendy Cameron
2. Business Arising From 12/10/15 Report:
There is a correction in the wording regarding potential town funding. It should read:
“The Heritage, Beautification & Cemetery Committee has made an application to Council for
consideration of a $5,000.00 budget for town beautification in the 2016 budget.”
When considering the downtown area to be included in beatification plans, it has been determined
that the entire area from London Street to Venison Street be included for the BIA area. The extent
of work completed in any year will be dependent on costs and funding available. It could extend
from either:
London Street to Venison Street
Oxford Street to Bridge Street
Brock Street to Washington Grand
The 5-year beautification planning and strategies will then look to side streets in the downtown area
and eventually to other areas of the town.
John Kirkland expressed concerns on behalf of the BIA Board and its own Beautification Committee
regarding a plan for 2016 Broadway beautification. The BIA has funding for hanging baskets and
their required daily watering in their 2016 budget. Lacking an alternate plan for this coming
spring/summer seasons, this will be the direction that will be taken. Christine Nagy confirmed that
Tillsonburg Horticultural Society monies allocated for Broadway beautification would be made
available should this be the only beautification project.
3. Fanshawe College:
To address concerns, the chair suggested that we move ahead in the agenda to report the
connections that have been made with the Fanshawe College Faculty of Environmental Design and
Planning.
Faculty at Fanshawe have identified that Tillsonburg has reports in place relating to the downtown
streetscape in the form of both the 1996 Tillsonburg Downtown Streetscape Master Plan and the
Town of Tillsonburg 2012 Central Area Design Study. Also, that the BIA has made important
progress with regard to concrete pavers, benches and waste receptacles with some street edge
modifications at intersections. Fanshawe will examine these plans and offer smaller scale site-
specific recommendations as well as ideas for things like amenity areas, green spaces with the
increased use of plants in the public realm.
Fanshawe has proposed that students in the Landscape Design Studio 04 class work with our
Beautification Working Group (BWG) on the conceptual design phase. Recognizing that we are
looking for a staged beautification plan over the next five years, they understand that the priorities
will be to address the immediate need for seasonal display, such as planted urns, on Broadway for
2016. This will be their first detailed design exercise. Following that, they will focus on a Master
Plan Design of the streetscape and amenity spaces of Broadway, the side streets and other green
spaces around the town. The BWG recommended possible areas such as the Rotary Clock Tower
area, The Rolph Street Public School or the McLaughlin-owned greenspace opposite the Station
Arts Centre.
Fanshawe students and faculty will be visiting Tillsonburg in early March to tour the area in
preparation for the work. A few BWG members will assist with the tour: Christine Nagy, John
Kirkland, Matt Fenn and Corey Hill. A report and recommendations are anticipated prior to the end
of April. It is understood by everyone that dependent on funding, we are planning to implement
some aspects of the initial beautification recommendations. The deadline for implementation would
be June 1st.
Motion: Move by Sue Saelens, seconded by Paul DeCloet, that we accept the Fanshawe
College School of Landscape Design proposal to prepare initial and 5-year
conceptual design phase plans for beatification in Tillsonburg. Carried.
4. Budget:
Christine has investigated the Oxford Community Foundation and the Wilkinson Fund as a source
for funding which will support Tillsonburg-specific projects. The Tillsonburg Horticultural Society,
given their non-profit charitable status, will be the BWG member to submit the funding application.
The letter of intent is due June 13th with the application deadline of September 16th.
Committee members also suggested the Lions Club, Rotary Club, the Kinsmen Club, and TD
Friends of the Environment as possible funding partners. The Horticultural Society will approach
these groups once site-specific are assessed and approved by the BWG and the Heritage,
Beautifcation & Cemetery Committee.
The BIA’s beautification funding will go towards funding the hanging baskets this season. To date,
there has not been any funding approved by the Town of Tillsonburg.
5. Containers/Urns
Matt Fenn presented a number of container/urn ideas for the downtown core. These are of
commercial grade and would be in place through the four seasons, providing year-round interest:
bulbs in the early spring, annuals/grasses/tropicals for the spring and summer, mums for the
autumn season with evergreens and branches for winter. Some presented examples included
containers ranging in size from 3’ W x 30” H or 4’ square x 30” H. Wholesale costs range upward of
$200.00 each. The fabrications vary from plastic/resin to metal (which are similar to the current
metal benches and receptacles), to concrete. It’s premature to identify specific containers. We will
wait for Fanshawe designs and recommendations.
6. Other Business:
Our ability to implement any beautification recommendations in 2016 is dependent on funding. It is
the BWG’s recommendations that at a minimum, we work toward completing beautification
plans/recommendations at least at one Broadway intersection, to show forward movement and to
determine public response.
Corey suggested that the Parks & Facilities beautification efforts at the parkette at the southeast
corner of Broadway & Oxford could incorporate elements of the Fanshawe recommendations in
2016.
Penny will contact Darlene Covey from the Town Centre Mall management office to determine if
they are interested in incorporating Fanshawe’s recommendations in the Mall’s beautification
efforts.
7. Date of Next Meeting
At the call of the Chair.
Recorder: Penny Esseltine
Acting Secretary: Christine Nagy