Parks master plan
Parks and open spaces are the basis on which communities are built. They are where we play, walk our dog and exercise, where we meet our neighbours and celebrate together. Our Parks Master Plan guides where and how we build parks and what goes into a park in Kitchener.
Parks Master Plan
In May 2025, Council approved Kitchener’s Places and Spaces Parks Master Plan, the new guiding strategic document for parks and open spaces in Kitchener. This Master Plan updates the 2010 Parks Strategic Plan.
Divided into two parts – Places and Spaces – and informed by an extensive community engagement process, the Master Plan includes recommendations for parks and open spaces over the next 10 to 20 years. These recommendations include near-, mid- and long-term priorities funded entirely by forecast budgets. They will be implemented in a way that prioritizes engagement while considering their meaning and impact on Kitchener’s vision to “build a city for everyone where, together, we take care of the world around us - and each other.”
Spaces
The Spaces strategy focuses on the quantity of park spaces and outlines the vision for parkland over the next 20 years. The Spaces document:
- sets a target of 10 square metres of local park per person across the city
- identifies nine critical needs communities where we’ll look to add up to 18 new parks over the coming years
- details the need to work with partners like school boards and hydro companies to maximize shared opportunities to use open space for the public
- provides the foundation for the parkland dedication bylaw and policy, which have been passed by council and include guidelines and supports for developers to help increase public open spaces
Places
The Places strategy focuses on the quality of park experiences in a document that:
- details the vision for parks in Kitchener
- explores the quality and design of park spaces and infrastructure
- considers environmental factors like habitat, stormwater and climate change resiliency
- makes 50 recommendations for parks and open spaces to be implemented over the next 10 years, grouped into four impact areas: Parks for Everyone, Connecting Park Experiences, Planning Parks for the Future and Responsive Park Spaces
Contact Us
City of Kitchener
200 King Street West,
Kitchener, Ontario
Telephone: 519-741-2345,
TTY: 1-866-969-9994
mailto:info@kitchener.ca