KITCHENER — When the City of Kitchener gave residents a bigger say in how to spruce up two parks, the answer from the community was to build a place for people of all ages, with everything from edible gardens to beach volleyball courts.

A year ago, Kitchener embarked on an experiment called "participatory budgeting" — giving residents in two neighbourhoods a vote in what sorts of improvements should go into two parks.

Residents voted in favour of redesigning Sandhills Park and Elmsdale Park with all sorts of fun features — chess tables, a ping-pong table and shrubs that offer a tasty snack, some things not seen in other city parks.

Normally, when a local park is due for an upgrade, parks staff hold a public meeting to get a sense of what might be needed, then come up with a plan that's presented to the neighbourhood.

This time, the city tried to reach a broader cross-section of the community, even going door-to-door to encourage residents to have a say.

For each redesign, the city held three meetings with residents, who brainstormed about what they wanted to see, and then voted on the final design.

The result? Two parks that will be uniquely designed by and for the neighbourhoods.

Elmsdale Park in the Chandler Mowat neighbourhood, between the expressway and busy Ottawa Street, is an area with lots of kids and new Canadians.

The park right now has limited features: A broad expanse of shadeless grass, a small scrub ball diamond at one end, trees on the park edges, and a small play structure.

Residents voted in favour of more sports features, such as beach volleyball and basketball courts, chess tables and a picnic area.

"Hopefully there's some nice community pickup games that happen," said city landscape architect Ashley DeWitt, who is working on the designs for both parks.

"Anything we do in (Elmsdale) is going to attract more people. We'll have things that attract different user groups and age groups, from chess to ping-pong and basketball."

Sandhills Park is quite different. It's in an older part of the city, tucked behind homes in the downtown neighbourhood of Cedar Hill, and is a shade-filled, hilly park of less than a hectare.

Its redesign will put in a natural playground, community event space and a perennial garden.

"We're excited to see that this process enabled residents to spend our budget in a way that best meets the distinct needs of their community," said Janette MacDonald, who led the consultations for the city.

The city will analyze how the whole process worked, and whether it's something it would like to continue, she said.

Researchers at the University of Waterloo worked with the city to design the process, and will report back to city staff this fall.

Each park will get upgrades worth $115,000 including $15,000 donated by the Kitchener Pioneer Lions Club. Construction is expected to start this fall and wrap up by summer 2019.

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Details about the new designs can be seen at the city's website kitchener.ca under "participatory budgeting."

cthompson@therecord.com

Twitter: @ThompsonRecord