Rockway Centre
Over a decade in the making, Rockway Centre is finally being redeveloped
Having been discussed for more than a decade, it sounds like Kitchener is now moving closer to building a new ‘older adult community centre’. Rockway Centre has provided programming for older adults for nearly 50 years at its King Street East location. While Kitchener has 15 community centres, this is the only one dedicated as an ‘older adult facility’. According to the staff report, Rockway Centre “includes 11 program rooms, plus a café, outdoor patio, lobby, billiards room, pottery shed and commercial kitchen. In 2023, the Rockway Centre had more than 30,000 visits for programs and services like fitness classes, learning programs, social groups, wellness programs, community events, and more.”
The building, originally a trolley bus transit terminal, requires substantial repairs and “lacks basic amenities often found in other community centres, such as accessible washrooms, a gym, storage space and change rooms.” These issues were identified during a 2010 facility audit. “The audit revealed issues like poor foundation drainage, limited barrier-free access, and a need to replace the existing elevator,” notes the staff report.
In response to that 2010 staff report, the city recommended closing Rockway Centre and implementing more senior-focused programming at community centres throughout Kitchener. That resulted in public protests, which saw one WR Record editorial declare, “Grey power is alive and well in the city of Kitchener.” Those “letters, angry protests and delegations to city council bore fruit, as councillors voted to keep the centre open and look for a private-sector partner to redevelop the site.”
While there was interest in improving the Rockway Centre, it was unclear “what services the city ought to provide, where seniors should access those services and whether it needs to expand the number of sites where they are offered, or concentrate them.” In 2015, Kitchener Council decided to add $6 million to the capital forecast for 2024-2025 for the Rockway Centre redevelopment plan.
In 2019, the City underwent a Leisure Facilities Master Plan which noted that “partnerships with school boards and private organizations are becoming increasingly important to municipalities as costs to build and operate stand-alone recreation facilities continue to rise.” Staff recommended that the city “pursue a partnership with the private sector to redevelop Rockway Centre into a medium to high density residential building that addresses the heritage value of the property and includes a ground floor older adult community centre (to be operated by the municipality with the option to own), as well as possible ancillary medical/dental, retail and office type uses.”
The City is now advancing their Rockway redevelopment plan and have outlined some of the challenges with the current building, including: poor traffic flow, lack of accessible washrooms, an insufficient elevator system, lack of storage and change rooms, no gymnasium space, and more. Staff conclude, “the lack of these basic amenities, which are common in other community facilities, severely limits older adult programming at Rockway Centre.”
As noted in the staff report, two options exist: rebuild the centre at its current location (1405 King St E) or build a new centre at a nearby location (yet to be determined). The City believes it would be beneficial “to find a partner to redevelop the older adult centre and gain a better understanding of the options partners may be open to through the request for information process.”
This WR Record article suggests that advantages in seeking a different location include “allowing the existing facility to remain open while a new one is built, giving the city the option of selling the current site once a new one is ready, possibly located closer to the light rail transit line.”
Learning from the protest-filled 2010 experience, the City is engaging in a fulsome community engagement process as plans are being developed. Kitchener’s Deputy Chief Administrative Officer, Michael May says that the city has been “much more deliberate this time in building positive, trusting relationships” with users and stakeholders.
Ward 8 Coucnillor, Margaret Johnston agrees. “The City is committed to working with older adults from across the city to create a centre that will better meet their needs while also providing a warm and welcoming space for them to call their own.”
The goal is for the new centre to be welcoming, accessible, modern and include amenities like a gymnasium, large multi-purpose rooms, accessible washrooms and other spaces that are specifically designed for older adult programming.
“For years, the greatest strength of Rockway has always been its people—the users, volunteers and staff. This new facility will be an opportunity to take that strength and potentially make it even stronger through collaboration with some other amazing community partners,” says Kitchener Mayor Berry Vrbanovic.
Opportunities to have your say on the Rockway Centre redevelopment plan:
Take the survey (which closes September 30th, 2024)
Add your ideas to the Engage Kitchener site
Attend an in-person event:
Welcome Back BBQ: Give input during a special encore Rockin’ it at Rockway event on September 11 from 6 to 8 p.m. featuring live music and a free BBQ at Rockway Centre. Registration is required. Please register online or call by phone at 519-741-2507.
Coffee socials: Share your thoughts over complimentary coffee, tea and light refreshments at:
Rockway Centre: Thursday, September 12, from noon to 2 p.m.
Kingsdale Community Centre: Monday, September 16, from 9 a.m. to noon
Rockway Centre: Wednesday, September 18, from 4:30 to 7:30 p.m.
Breithaupt Centre: Tuesday, September 24, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Click for additional information.
In other news, the Ontario government has decided to shut down 10 of the current 17 Consumption and Treatment Services sites operating in the province. Kitchener and Guelph sites must close, as well sites in Toronto, Ottawa, Thunder Bay, and Hamilton as they no longer meet the new distance requirement of being at least 200 metres from schools and childcare centres. These sites can apply to become a Homelessness and Addiction Recovery Treatment (HART) Hub. The HART Hubs “will not offer safer supply, supervised drug consumption or needle exchange programs. Instead, they will offer other forms of support such as supportive housing, employment help and addiction care.”
It appears likely that there will be a gap in services available. “While the supervised consumption sites within 200 metres of schools and child-care centres have been given a March 2025 deadline to shut, it's not clear yet when the HART hubs will be operational.”
There will be a lot more to come but until then, if you want to reach out to elected officials on this issue, here is their contact info:
Minister of Health, Sylvia Jones: sylvia.jones@pc.ola.org. Leave a messages at her constituency office: 519-941-7751.
Premier Ford: doug.fordco@pc.ola.org, leave a message at his constituency office: 416-745-2859, or at the Premier’s office: 416-325-7635.
Also worth noting is this upcoming class offered by The Working Centre.
Diploma in Ecological Economics
The Diploma in Ecological Economics class begins Wednesday, September 11th at 7pm. This is a community-based class that explores the critical question:
Can we have an economy that meets human needs while at the same time being in harmony with nature?
Participants will share their own experiences and connect their stories to larger ideas about earth and economy. The class runs for 10 weeks on Wednesdays 7pm - 9pm from Sept. 11th to Nov. 27th with a two week break on Oct. 16th and 23rd.
If you are interested in participating or want more information, please contact Isaiah at: isaiahr@theworkingcentre.org RSVP by Friday, September 6th.
Another fantastic update. I absolutely love reading Michael May’s approach highlighting the need for trusted relationship building as a priority in this next process of evaluation.