Wellington North’s economic development committee is recommending hiring consulting firm Millier Dickenson Blais to guide it in establishing a cultural mapping plan of the township.
The committee approved the hiring at its meeting Feb. 20 at a cost of $38,000. The hiring still requires council approval. The firm was considered the top choice of four applications for the post, according to tourism, marketing and promotion manager April Marshall.
“More and more municipalities are moving forward with cultural mapping,” she told the committee.
Marshall expects the process will get underway in March and be completed by December.
The company conducted a similar plan for the Town of Minto and business economic manager Dale Small said the municipality has assisted Wellington North with pre-planning.
“Minto has been very helpful in helping us analyze what we require,” Small said.
Committee member James Taylor will act as liaison with the consulting firm during the process that will see mapping of the township’s cultural strengths in urban and rural areas. It will include identifying and mapping heritage buildings and events in the township.
“A cultural mapping process and profile of Wellington North’s cultural resources will be undertaken as the first step in developing the (overall) plan,” Marshall said. “Broad community engagement will occur through cultural forums which will assist in building a shared vision for the township and contribute to the ongoing process of integrating culture across all facets of municipal planning and decision-making.”
The township recently received a $46,000 provincial grant to develop the plan. The grant is part of Creative Communities Prosperity Fund designed to assist municipalities with putting together cultural plans.
The recently-approved Wellington County economic strategic plan identifies the creation of a county-wide cultural master plan as a short-term priority.
“Receiving this funding will enable Wellington North to be positioned as one of the leaders in the county for municipal cultural planning,” Marshall added.
