The Upside (January 2026)
Let's focus on good things happening in and around Waterloo Region
We’re two weeks into 2026 and it’s already feeling like A LOT. But, there is a lot of good happening too. What better way to start off the year than with the Upside?
A bit of a New Year’s Resolution from Nadia Bolz-Weber:
Be it resolved that:
We the people of 2026 will look for beauty.
We will write down the good things about each other.
We will call our friends just to tell them what we love about them.
When it is we who suck, we will admit it and move on.
We will refuse to be manipulated into believing that we do not need each other.
We choose attention as an act of love—and of resistance.100 new trees and shrubs have been planted outside of Cambridge’s Fountain Street Soccer Complex thanks to Sustainable Waterloo Region (SWR), alongside GrandBridge Energy. “These plantings support wildlife, absorb carbon, and help improve air quality, aligning with a shared commitment to building healthier, more climate-resilient communities.” Read more here.
The Queen’s Bush Settlement is one of the largest early Black settlements in Ontario, and there will soon be a mural in its honour. The Elmira group Hearts Open For Everyone (HOPE) is working with the Queen’s Bush Settlement Advisory Committee on creating the mural and have recently put out a call for artists.
Tracy Lee Johnson, a member with the advisory committee, said she hopes the mural will “remind people that ordinary people, who were facing extraordinary odds, can leave such a mark in our history.”
It’s great to see Union Co-operative receive Immigration Partnership’s 2025 Newcomer Landlord Award. The award celebrates those “who remove barriers, offer flexible and responsive support, and help newcomers build a sense of belonging.” The award also noted that Union Cooperative’s “long-term plans to develop additional units specifically for low-income families highlight a sustained commitment to meeting urgent housing needs in Waterloo Region.” Congratulations to Sean Campbell and Union Cooperative on this well-deserved recognition!
Dr. Andrew Boozary and the Gattuso Centre for Social Medicine have developed Ontario’s first hospital-based homelessness and eviction prevention program. “The program uses donations to pay off eligible University Health Network patients’ rent arrears, or to pay first and last month’s rent so a patient can access housing.” Making the argument that paying people’s rent really is a health care issue, Dr. Boozary said, “Evictions are implosions on people’s mental and physical health. This is preventative medicine.”
The library is one of my favourite places and I can barely keep up with all of the great things they are doing. Did you know that there are more than just books to borrow from KPL? You can also borrow: instruments, hockey skates, museum passes, snowshoes, and more. I mean, snowshoes! Come on, how great is that?
The Waterloo Region Community Fund launched the WRGive pilot last fall to raise funds for eight local projects that would “help strengthen social infrastructure across Waterloo Region.” Approximately $50,000 was raised to support the following initiatives:
Crow Shield Lodge – Bringing Together Indigenous Youth and Indigenous Culture
Extend-A-Family Waterloo Region – Helping families navigate the ‘in-between’ through connections and play
Kitchener Public Library – Help Bring Indigenous Leadership to the Heart of Library Decision-Making
Langs – North Dumfries Youth Hub
Rhythm & Blues Cambridge – Restoring Crowns, Inspiring Confidence: Black Hair Joy
Textile – Media Media: storytelling by and for misrepresented communities
TL;WR – Increasing the reach of TL;WR to more Waterloo Region residents
Uptown Waterloo BIA – Urban Garden Connecting Community
Dogs using transit? You know I wasn’t going to scroll past this story!
A mobile dog daycare, PawTrips, picks up their doggy crew each morning and “the dogs get taken on long walks though a variety of trails and to play at parks and outdoor spaces throughout the day.” According to this video, it seems this pet pack is pretty eager to board the bus!
Meanwhile, in human-related transit news, we should see a number of expanded transit routes coming to Waterloo Region later this year, including:
Weekday bus service connecting Wellesley Village with Conestoga Mall
Weekday bus service with a fixed route between Ayr and Conestoga’s Doon campus
Evening and weekend service added to Route 77 which links New Hamburg and The Boardwalk Station in Waterloo
“The regional service enhancements that form part of GRT’s township transit strategy also include converting the Forrest/Hincks flex route stops to be part of the main route, as customer demand in the area has been consistently high,” said regional transit planner Adam Fraser.
Local artists have transformed five bike lockers into works of art across Waterloo.
Brian Doucet captured some great ION shots during yesterday’s wintery weather.
This winter, Kitchener launches Canvas in the Sky, “a new street banner program, featuring ten talented Kitchener artists.” Vinyl banners reflecting each season will be displayed on light poles along King Street in downtown Kitchener.
The Waterloo Regional Health Network Cancer Centre and researchers at the University of Waterloo have contributed to research that “found colon cancer patients who had a structured exercise significantly improved their chances of survival by 37 per cent.”
In Kitchener, work continues on the 55 Franklin development which “will consist of four six-storey buildings with each building containing 60 apartments, for a total of 240 residential units, with 50% of the units at or below the median market rate.” The first three buildings are completed and the fourth building is expected to break ground this May. The Waterloo Region Community Foundation provided two loans valued at $900,000 each for the land portion of the third and fourth installments of the project.
“Our buildings are mixed income so there’s a wide range. We have one-bedroom apartments that start at about $550 a month and they go all the way up to market rent, which is about $1,650 to $1,700 for a one-bedroom,” Mike Maxwell said, adding he has witnessed what this housing has meant to many tenants.
“It’s a really diverse group in the buildings. We’ve seen hands-on how stable affordable housing can literally transform people’s lives. There’s less stress,” he said.
In November, Beyond Housing began construction on “20 new affordable townhomes that will offer safety, stability, and a fresh start for families in our community.” Project partners include: Women’s Crisis Services of Waterloo Region, The Region of Waterloo and CMHC, and many individual donors.
The homes range from one-bedroom accessible units to four-bedroom family homes and “half of the homes will be reserved for women and children moving from transitional housing or shelter, with ongoing outreach support available.”
Kitchener is supporting the development of 30 transitional housing units by partnering with Reception House. The city will provide municipal-owned lands and various grants to Reception House to provide transitional housing to refugees and new Canadians. The project includes 15 four-bedroom units, five three-bedroom units and 10 one-bedroom spaces on Wellington St. N.
In the fall, the Working Centre opened its new campus at 97 Victoria Street North, “a space designed to support people experiencing homelessness and those living in precarious housing.”
“The facility includes 44 housing units, a medical clinic, and a new home for St. John’s Kitchen, which offers daily meals, laundry, showers and other supports. The site will also serve as a base for outreach teams that work with encampments and help residents navigate social services.”
After some residents at 250 Frederick St were given eviction notices (N-13s), the Landlord and Tenant Board (LTB) has offered a reprieve. While the new landlord had told residents they needed to leave due to upcoming renovations, the LTB concluded, “the landlord has not established that it genuinely intends to carry out the work set out in the N-13s.” Residents are able to remain in their homes - although the owner has filed an appeal.
Thanks in part to regional funding, Supportive Housing of Waterloo’s (SHOW) building at 362 Erb St W. is expanding. A new 10-unit supportive housing project will “be the city’s first modular housing build. Modular housing is built in a factory and then delivered to the site, making it faster and more predictable than traditional construction.”
Building is planned for this summer with the goal of having residents move in before the end of this year.
In The Community Edition, Alex Kinsella shares about The Joy Experiments, a book which seeks to answer the question: What would cities look like if they were designed not just for efficiency, but for joy?
In that book, authors Paul Kalbfleisch and Scott Higgins “look at how private developers and community leaders can take risks that city halls often cannot.” Kalbfleisch said, “we have to find a way of taking people from isolation and division and create infrastructure that brings people together, that gives them some sense of optimism and collective joy.”
I’m definitely adding this one to my reading list!
Quick Links:
The Essentials Fund has wrapped up their fourth year of fundraising and granting (although donations are welcomed throughout the year). They say, “Because of your generosity, we raised over $52,000 and supported 18 local non-profit organizations who provide vital services, programming, and support to our most vulnerable community members.”
The Engaging Men program aims to prevent gender-based violence. The free and voluntary program is run by the Women’s Crisis Services of Waterloo Region. “The course offers eight counselling sessions and also includes referrals to other supports the men might need,” and over 80 men have participated since it began in 2023.
While having bees on your roof may sound like a problem for some, for the folks at Indwell’s Strathearne Suites in Hamilton, it’s a way to “build community and caring for creation in the heart of the city.”
Cambridge Food Bank has once again been recognized by Charity Intelligence Canada, earning a Top 100 Charity Designation with an A+ rating for impact, transparency, and efficiency.
“Waterloo researchers are closer to commercializing a health care breakthrough for continuous monitoring of blood glucose, ketone, lactate and more, which could mean the end to invasive and painful needle pricks.”
Region of Waterloo Tenant and Community Liaison Specialists “provide resources, encourage community engagement, help resolve issues, and support people to avoid eviction if they are struggling to make ends meet.” Click to learn more about this role.
Kitchener’s Downtown Cycling Grid project not only provides a safe, protected space for cyclists of all ages to ride, it is also award-winning infrastructure. This past fall, the project received the 2025 Active Transportation Achievement Award. “The cycling grid is maintained and used year-round, and saw a 164% increase in cycling even when it was only 70% complete.”
Speaking of awards, Kitchener handed out the 2025 Great Places awards in the fall. Winners included Holly’s Café (Placemaking Award), Southwest Community Library (Sustainable Kitchener Award), and Thresholds Homes and Supports (Affordable Housing Solutions Award). Check out this beautifully shot video showing some of the many great places to be discovered in Kitchener.
Indwell’s St. Mark’s Place also received an Affordable Housing Solutions Award and you can see why in this video.
Click to learn more about the Great Places Awards and to see all of the winners.
We’re fortunate to have a ton of amazing local musicians in Waterloo Region! If you don’t believe me, listen to Midtown Radio for a bit and you’ll soon be convinced. One of my personal faves, is I, the Mountain. CBC’s Joe Pavia interviewed them recently where they shared a bit about the band and their plans for 2026.
Do you have a favourite local band or musician? If so, share it in the comments!
Love this roundup. The transitonal housing partnership with Reception House caught my eye because most cities treat refugee housing as purely a federal problem. Waterloo's approach of pairing municpal land with grants shows how local action can fill gaps way faster than waiting for higher levels of government. I saw similar delays in my own town where nothing moved until local nonprofits stepped in.
So much good news in one place! I especially loved the street-banner program and bike-shelter-decoration project. The work of local artists brightens every commute and stroll.
I'm also checking out Alex Kinsella's recommended book, The Joy Experiments, asap. Thanks!