By Kim Nordbye, Project Manager, Social Prosperity Wood Buffalo
In 2011, MacDonald Island Park Corporation (MIPC) and their expansion project consultants met with many nonprofit organizations in the region to get input around plans to build a nonprofit shared space community centre as part of the facility expansion. The MIPC Board of Directors plans to provide rental/ lease/ accommodations for community nonprofit organizations that are seeking affordable operating spaces within a professional and supportive environment. Since last year there have been several updates to the plans and to the proposed shared space for nonprofit organizations. MIPC recently released the updated MIPEX plans and held two weeks of community engagement sessions for public input. These plans can be viewed athttp://www.macdonaldisland.ca/about-us/expansion and, if you haven’t already, we strongly encourage you to review these plans & provide input before Thursday May 3, the last day for online input on the MIPEX expansion plans. In particular you will note the area marked in green on page 19 of the presentation as the planned location of the nonprofit shared space, on the second floor (Suite Level) of the new facility.
With the updated plans, it is now anticipated that the nonprofit shared space will:
- be located on the 2nd floor (Suite Level) of the new facility – see the area in green in the online MIPEX presentation
- provide approximately 30-35 units (offices or cubicles)
- have a minimum of 20% sports & recreation organizations and 20% social or other community organizations in the facility however the design will be flexible to meet the needs of the organizations now and into the future.
- be available at a cost of approximately $14 per square foot
- be available by approximately September 2014
The MIPC Board of Directors has established the MacDonald Island Park Expansion (MIPEX) Committee to support the development of the new facilities while a separate group is tasked with developing a model for the operations of the nonprofit shared space. This separate group has been divided into two sub-committees:
- the Shared Space Committee (SSC) is an internal administrative committee focused on the development and design of the nonprofit shared space.
- the Expansion Shared Space Governance Committee (ESSGC) is an external administrative committee that reports into the SSC and will focus on the development of the operational model and governance process for the nonprofit shared space.
What’s next?
- The SSC and ESSGC will have their first meetings in May and will coordinate plans for the development of the shared space including further consultation with nonprofit community organizations to take place between now and the end of July 2012 with the anticipated goal of presenting a proposed model and process to the MIPC Board of Directors in August 2012.
- To ensure success for current and future shared spaces, MIPC will continue to collaborate with Social Prosperity Wood Buffalo, the Wood Buffalo Community Village and the Redpoll Centre to ensure there is a regional framework for sustainable nonprofit centres where our community organizations can dream together, work together and grow together.
