Ontario Association of Architects (OAA) President John Stephenson thinks the City of Windsor has got the right idea when it comes to redeveloping its core urban areas.
Stephenson met recently with members of the Windsor Region Society of Architects and had the opportunity of having a look at some of the city’s recent projects.
“It’s very eclectic, actually, there’s an interesting collection of older buildings, heritage buildings, that are getting paid attention to in various cases,” Stephenson said in a recent article in the Windsor Star. “I think it could benefit from more of an urban design approach. Particularly the areas we visited, they seemed a little disjointed, not connected, not well-connected to each other and not part of an overall system.
“But what I saw were areas that were indicative of transition, areas where redevelopment is starting to happen and investment in older buildings is staring to happen and perhaps it just needs more time.”
The OAA oversees more than 6,000 architects and related professions through 13 regional associations across the province. Every fall, the sitting president visits each of the associations.