UOIT releases comprehensive master plan for downtown Oshawa

OSHAWA, ON. - During a presentation to the City of Oshawa's Development Services Committee today the University of Ontario Institute of Technology (UOIT) released a plan that will guide the smooth integration of the university's downtown campus location into a strengthened downtown Oshawa. The document entitled Into the Future: A Framework and Action Plan for Growing UOIT and Downtown Oshawa was the result of an innovative partnership between UOIT and a multi-disciplinary team of planning professionals and community advisors.

"This downtown framework and action plan will guide the university and the City of Oshawa over the next few years and decades," said Dr. Ronald Bordessa, president, UOIT. "This is a pivotal document that will help to successfully shape growth in the downtown and allow us to move from a clear vision to reality."

UOIT is anticipating that by 2015 the number of students attending classes in downtown Oshawa could more than triple. To accommodate growth of that magnitude the document evaluates the existing inventory of building space, available land, hard services, social services, transportation and parking, environmental sustainability and accessibility. In response, the framework and action plan sets out an ambitious but achievable path that will allow responsible growth to 2015 and beyond to 2030. It also proposes an urban planning framework that will guide UOIT and the City of Oshawa and help ensure that growth is carried out in the most impactful way.

The framework and action plan evaluates the economic impact of an expanding university in downtown Oshawa. The plan finds that between 2006 and 2010 retail vacancies decreased by nearly half and area businesspeople suggest the single largest contributor is the university. The document confirms that continued growth of UOIT and the resulting spinoffs will potentially result in hundreds of millions of additional dollars being injected into the downtown and hundreds of jobs being created.

"The report confirms that the university's expansion in Oshawa's downtown represents nothing less than a paradigm shift, from an economy rooted in the manufacturing sector to a more diversified knowledge-based economy," said Milovick. "By working together with the city to implement this plan, we will have a downtown that is truly dynamic, stimulating and inspirational."

Nearly every aspect of this framework and action plan has cost implications, however the study makes it clear that each investment should be assessed on a case-by-case basis as funding becomes available.

The framework and action plan was funded by the Government of Canada through the Community Adjustment Fund and completed before the March 31, 2011 deadline. The document was produced in approximately nine months and came in well under budget.

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Media contact
Dan Miles
Communications and Marketing
Ontario Tech University
905.721.8668 ext. 2979
dan.miles@uoit.ca