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Formed in 2018, the Burlington Urban Design Advisory Panel is an independent advisory body comprised of design professionals that provides urban design advice to the Planning and Building Department on all tall and mid rise buildings and all public development projects, studies, and policy initiatives.

Brad has a passion for design and carries a fresh, forward-thinking, enthusiastic energy to every project. He is driven by the intimate relationship to memories of place, emotional connection to environments, and the understanding of how people interact with the landscape. Brad has been involved in numerous design and planning projects throughout Ontario, Alberta, and western Canada.

As a Senior Landscape Architect at Seferian Design Group, Brad is a full member of the OALA, CSLA, and the ASLA. Brad strongly believes that it is both the opportunity and responsibility of landscape architects to give back to their communities and educate on design and the profession. He is passionate about giving back to the Burlington community. Brad is currently a Board Member for the Burlington Downtown Business Association (BDBA) and Member of the Joseph Brant Hospital Foundation’s Young Professional Committee. Brad was a member of the Urban Design Peer Review Panel for the City of London in 2014. He also volunteers his time for various community initiatives throughout Burlington (public art juries, community events, active transportation initiatives) and the Bruce Trail Conservancy.

Brad recognized the current contentious issue facing the City of Burlington and wanted to be part of the fix. He is excited to provide urban design expertise to balance growth and intensification in the City. Brad has a vested interest in the local ecology and the cultural history of Burlington and he takes great pride in the understanding and treatment of public spaces throughout the city.

This year at Belgard University program there were numerous hands-on product demos and interactive educational sessions. Attendees spent the day growing their knowledge and business. Attendees include Belgard Authorized Dealers and Landscape Contractors.

Presenting at 2018 Belgard University Richmond providing valuable information on business management to Belgard Authorized Contractors and Dealers!

Exciting news out of Waterloo – HIP Developments sold out their new condo, CIRCA 1877, in less than two days! This is the first high-rise condo in the region to sell out this quickly, proving that the demand for condo living in Waterloo is higher than ever.

“I expected a good response, but our sales and marketing team had to start cancelling appointments with potential buyers the afternoon we launched our VIP Event. That’s how quickly the units sold,” says HIP Developments President, Scott Higgins.

Scott Higgins

The sales and marketing team also confirmed that 90% of the buyers are local! CIRCA 1877 features 188 units and is located in the heart of Uptown Waterloo at 181 King St. South. HIP Developments specifically targeted empty nesters and millennials.

“We approached this project in a new way with the goal of challenging the status quo in condo projects,” explains Higgins. “Our vision was to bring design, amenities, tech and food & beverage together in one project in a way that hadn’t been done before in Waterloo Region.”

“The project team of Condo Culture, Condo Culture Design and Him & Her Inc. played a key role right from conception of the idea help craft this project,” he added. “They have helped us prove that the city is longing for a more modern, urban, and tech focused take on living.”

On the ground floor of CIRCA 1877, there will be a new restaurant in the old Brick Brewing Company building (HIP Developments has a history of preserving heritage buildings). While being a great place to hang out and meet up with friends and neighbours, the restaurant will also offer in suite and poolside drink and beverage service! We’ve never seen this type of amenity in a new condo before.

Other amenities at CIRCA 1877 include poolside cabanas, a fitness facility, an indoor/outdoor yoga studio, a green roof community garden, co-working office space with gigabit wifi, and residents have smart thermostats and suite entries that are controllable via a smartphone.

“The sell out of CIRCA 1877 over this past weekend proves that the condo market locally is ready for a shake up,” says Scott Cruickshank of Condo Culture. “This building has created a new record in the community not only by selling out, but also for the forward-thinking trend of lower parking ratios and a focus on urban building amenities & tech features.”

Scott Cruickshank

It’s definitely a smart move for HIP Developments to target empty nesters and millennials in the same condo residence. The Ryerson City Building Institute and Urbanation recently released a joint report stating that millennials and baby boomers are demanding the same type of housing. Big congratulations goes out to all the CIRCA 1877 purchasers, the team at HIP Developments, and everyone else involved in this tremendously successful project! We can’t wait to see what else HIP has in the pipeline.

City staff have revealed the plans for Mico Valeriote Park when it undergoes renovations later this year.

Sent to councillors in an information package last month, the master plan for the Elizabeth Street park features “an informal open space, a large playground, a water play pump, naturalization areas, seating areas, and concrete and asphalt pathways,” according to a staff report.

The final layout for the new Mico Valeriote Park comes after two different phases of community engagement last year, including having residents comment on three different designs that were put forward and voice their desires for what they wanted for the park.

The final design takes into account one of the previously released layouts, but takes into account the feedback staff received, including the addition of a walking path along the perimeter of the park.

The park’s wading pool, which was originally built in 1974, is to be removed this year. Following a report to council last year, it was decided to remove the pool as it does not comply with the city’s Water Efficiency Strategy, is at the end of its life cycle and requires ongoing costly maintenance.

In this year’s capital budget, $450,000 has been allocated for the implementation of the master plan, as well as the construction for the new park. Staff anticipate that the park will be finished and open to the public by the fourth quarter of 2018.

Haig Seferian (SDG) presented at the Ryerson School of Fashion Awards Ceremony, handing out Family Scholarships to Fashion Design Students for 2017.

A relation to Haig was originally in the first graduating class of Fashion Design at Ryerson. When she died, she gave the university the funds to start a scholarship in her name. Now, each year Haig participates in the ceremony as Students receive a number of scholarships to help them out.

Ryerson Fashion:
http://ryersonfashion.ca/current-students/undergraduate/scholarships-awards

Scholarship Opportunities:
Helen and Sulo Hutko Award

There are $46,000 worth of scholarships awarded out every year in the family’s name. Haig contributes his time to take part in the cermony every year at the Holt Renfrew store in Yorkville.

An iconic piece of Galt’s history was given a new lease on life Thursday (Aug. 31) morning.

A small crowd gathered in Queen’s Square in front of the Centennial Fountain to watch Mayor Doug Craig, Cambridge MP Bryan May and a small group of children turn on the refurbished fountain.

Work began on the $250,000 renewal project this summer and it was completed last week. The cost of the project was split between the city, province and federal government’s Canada Infrastructure Program for Canada150.

“This fountain was built in 1967 in honour of Canada’s centennial. It’s only fitting that is it being rebuilt with Canada150 funding,” said May during the opening ceremony.

The federal government contributed $83,250 to the project. Queen’s Square was originally donated to the municipality by the Dickson family and has since become a place to gather and a community hub. The fountain was added at the foot of the square in 1967 with funding provided by Gore Mutual Insurance.

“This fountain has become a significant and important part of our community,” said Craig. “It’s representative of what’s happening in the city.”

He went on to reference the ongoing work on the new pedestrian bridge, whose twin spans were delivered to the riverfront – downstream to the fountain – on Wednesday (Aug. 30), and on the old Galt post office building. Deputy City Manager Hardy Bromberg told the gathering that in renovating the aging fountain the city has improved its accessibility, lighting and “provides a more public useable space.”

Work on the fountain included replacing the seating around the pool with a narrower concrete bench. The Russian Gun at the top of the fountain was moved about two metres to provide better sight lines. Cracks in the pool bottom were repaired and its steps straightened. Coloured concrete banding was added at the edges of the walkways and seating to make them more visible. Slopes around the fountain were also reduced to improve accessibility.

Although construction around the fountain is substantially complete, further work needs to be done. In the coming weeks, new concrete planters and decorative elements will be installed.

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CAMBRIDGE — The Centennial Fountain in the middle of Queen’s Square reopened to the public on Thursday after renovations wrapped up last week.

The $250,000 project included upgrades to fix the crumbling seating and ledges of the fountain and also make it a more accessible space. Cambridge received $83,000 in Canada 150 infrastructure funding from the federal government to make the improvements.

Raised concrete planters were spread out to create better views, shorter seats were installed and the concrete seating around the fountain was replaced with a bench. Coloured bands were also added to the ground to increase visibility around the fountain.

Cracks in the fountain bowl were fixed and the historic cannon was relocated two metres to the east to improve visibility.

The fountain was built in 1967 to celebrate Canada’s 100th birthday. It was designated as a heritage landmark in 2005 as part of the Dickson Hill Heritage Conservation District.

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Brad Smith appointed to BDBA Board of Directors.

Please join us in welcoming Brad Smith of Seferian Design Group to the BDBA Board of Directors. Brad is both a resident and business owner in Burlington. He is heavily involved in development proiects throughout Burlington including: parks, open spaces, schoolyards, trails, community spaces and placemaking.

Brad is also actively involved in the Mayor’s Millennial Advisory Committee and the Burlington Chamber of Commerce Young Professionals Network.

Welcome to our team Brad!

http://burlingtondowntown.ca/

A Heritage Impact Assessment is undertaken to determine the potential impacts of a proposed development or site alteration on a heritage resource and recommended mitigation and conservation measures.

Heritage Impact Assessments can be required:

• for any inventoried, listed, or designated properties in a municipality;
• for any property adjacent to any inventoried, listed or designated properties in a municipality;
• for any property determined by city staff to have potential cultural heritage value;
• for any areas or property types prescribed in a municipality’s Official Plan;
• as part of an Environmental Assessment.

A Heritage Impact Assessment includes:

• preparation of a historical review;
• consultation with stakeholders;
• identification of Cultural Heritage Landscapes and built heritage resources of heritage interest and/or value;
• description of proposed project impacts;
• development of a conservation or mitigation strategy;
• ecommendations for next steps