2012-11-27 Committee Report - Community Development and Recreation Committee

City Council on November 27, 28 and 29, 2012, adopted the following:

1. City Council adopt the 2013-2017 Recreation Service Plan attached to the report (November 6, 2012) from the General Manager, Parks, Forestry and Recreation.

2. City Council authorize the General Manager, Parks, Forestry and Recreation to:

a. Implement the proposed new criteria for selecting Priority Centres contained in the recreation service plan for spring 2014, and City Council direct the General Manager, Parks Forestry and Recreation to report to the October 28, 2013 meeting of the Community Development and Recreation Committee with the list of new Priority Centres and include the projected costs in the 2014 divisional operating budget;

b. Replace the term "Priority Centre" with a new name for the policy;

c. Expand the "Swim to Survive" program in partnership with Toronto's school boards beginning in the fall of 2014; and

d. Develop a youth leadership program as outlined in the Recreation Service Plan in partnership with other City divisions, youth-serving agencies, the Toronto Youth Cabinet, arts and cultural organizations, and the school boards, and involve youth and youth organizations from across the City in the design and development of the programs.

3. City Council direct the General Manager, Parks, Forestry and Recreation to report back through the 2014 Budget process and to the Community Development and Recreation Committee in the spring of 2013 with a detailed implementation plan based on the direction from Council provided through its consideration of this report, including targets or benchmarks, timelines and resource requirements.

4. City Council request the General Manager, Parks Forestry and Recreation to establish a Recreation Service Plan Advisory Group composed of users and stakeholders that is representative of the geographic and demographic diversity of Toronto.

5. City Council give Priority Centre designation to all new Parks, Forestry and Recreation facilities in Regent Park as they open and that the older facilities lose that designation as they are decommissioned.

6. City Council reinstate fee-exempt adult programs in Priority Centres effective July 1, 2013, subject to the necessary funding being identified through the 2013 budget process.

7. City Council request the General Manager, Parks, Forestry and Recreation to include in the implementation plan a framework for retaining Priority Centre designation for facilities in neighbourhoods that are revitalized into mixed-income communities and where the percentage of low-income families is reduced by the introduction of new residents.

8 City Council request the General Manager, Parks Forestry and Recreation to examine and report back to Council, through the Community Development and Recreation Committee in Spring 2013 as part of the implementation phase of the 2013-2017 Recreation Service Plan, on the potential for a joint partnership with the East Scarborough Storefront in the creation of a Priority Centre.

The Community Development and Recreation Committee recommends that:

1. City Council adopt the attached 2013-2017 Recreation Service Plan.

2. City Council authorize the General Manager of Parks, Forestry and Recreation to:

a. Implement the proposed new criteria for selecting Priority Centres contained in the recreation service plan for fall 2014;

b. Replace the term "Priority Centre" with a new name for the policy;

c. Expand the "Swim to Survive" program in partnership with Toronto's school boards beginning in the fall of 2014; and

3. City Council direct the General Manager of Parks, Forestry and Recreation to report back through the 2014 Budget process and to the Community Development and Recreation Committee in the spring of 2013 with a detailed implementation plan based on the direction from Council provided through its consideration of this report, including targets or benchmarks, timelines and resource requirements.

4. City Council request the General Manager of Parks Forestry and Recreation to establish a Recreation Service Plan Advisory Group composed of users and stakeholders that is representative of the geographic and demographic diversity of Toronto.

The Community Development and Recreation Committee:

1. Requested the General Manager of Parks, Foresty and Recreation to prepare a report to Community Development and Recreation Committee by September 2013 on the health and social benefits, as well as the financial impact, of options for extending universal access to all recreation programming.

2. Requested the General Manager, Parks, Forestry and Recreation to report back to the Community Development and Recreation Committee in 2013 with a comprehensive youth recreation engagement strategy that provides status updates on past goals and targets for youth engagement and inclusion in recreation programming and sets new targets/benchmarks, timelines and resource requirements.

3. Requested the General Manager of Parks Forestry and Recreation to report to the Community Development and Recreation Committee in early 2013 on youth drop-in programs examining the level of programs currently, and opportunities for expansion, first at priority centres and further across all community centres and satellite sites.

4. Requested the General Manager, Parks, Forestry and Recreation to review the Welcome Policy usage and subsidy cap and report to the Community Development and Recreation Committee in 2013 on the need to index the subsidy cap or expand the overall allocation for the Welcome Policy.

5. Requested the City Manager, in consultation with appropriate Divisions and Toronto Public Health, Toronto Police Service and other stakeholder groups, to report back to the Community Development and Recreation Committee in April 2013 with a feasibility report to create a "ciclovia" or "open streets" pilot program for Toronto.

This report seeks approval for the City of Toronto 2013-2017 Recreation Service Plan. The Plan was developed in accordance with principles adopted by Council in August 2009, and the Public Consultation Framework adopted by Council in April 2011. The Recreation Service Plan will guide the City of Toronto's delivery of recreation programs and services over the next five years.

The plan aims to increase overall participation in recreation, decrease financial barriers, and improve local and geographic access. It outlines the current role of Parks, Forestry and Recreation in the provision of recreation within the broader context of the Toronto recreation service sector, that has many and diverse providers. Parks, Forestry and Recreation plans to improve access to recreation with specific attention to children, youth and seniors, and reduce barriers faced by low-income families, newcomers, and people with a disability.