King Street and City Centre District Streetscape

IBI Group provided design and contract administration services to the City of Kitchener to implement the first phase of their City Centre District Streetscape Master Plan. The IBI team redesigned Kitchener’s core downtown streets observing a “pedestrian-first” theme.

The project has provided a premium downtown environment complete with improved pedestrian facilities, upgraded lighting, and distinctive street furnishings unique to the City Centre District. The plan was based on the principle that investment in a high quality public realm will serve as a catalyst for private sector investment, intensification, and the renewal of Downtown Kitchener.

Innovative design features such as infiltration planters designed to promote groundwater recharge, low profile curbs to improve pedestrian accessibility, and a flexible parking system that utilizes removable bollards to allow the City to respond to the changing face of the downtown, have been recognized as pioneering in the Ontario Context.

Coordination by a project management team that included representatives of the Downtown BIA and a variety of City departments allowed business concerns to be quickly addressed and major downtown events to be successfully staged in the new public space.