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This is the scenario ofa bedroomcommunitywhere largenumbersofpeople live in the region but

commutetoworkelsewhere.Despitelocaleconomicdecline,thesecommutersareservedbygoodlocal

andinterregionalmasstransit,whichattractspeopletotheregionandincreasesthesizeanddiversityof

thepopulation.Peoplefeellittleconnectiontothecommunitiesinwhichtheylivehowever,asthecities

andtownshavenotadaptedtothesechanges.Communityparticipationandinterestinlocalpoliticsis

low,asisthequalityofsocialserviceprovision,whichispoorlydirected.Thereislittlesenseofregional

identity as the identityof individual townsand cities have been submerged by suburbangrowth and

proximitytoToronto.

BedroomCommunity

BEDROOMCOMMUNITY

WATERLOOWELLINGTONSCENARIOS

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BedroomCommunityCharacteristics

Characterisedbyeconomicstagnationandrapid,diverse

populationgrowth.

DevelopmentleadstoCambridge,Kitchener,WaterlooandGuelphmergingintoonesinglecommunity.

Therearefewerlargeemployers,withgrowingunemploymentstrainingunemploymentinsuranceand

welfare.

Transientreductionsinlocaltaxrevenuesleadtoreductionsintheprovisionofpublicservices.

Thereissomenewentrepreneurialactivity. Thelocaleconomybecomesreliantonservice,retailand

constructionindustries.

Trafficandcommutingbothgrowandthecommutergrowthforcesdevelopmentofbetterpublictransitsystems.

CompetitionforjobsdiminishesdiversityintheworkplaceaslocalemployersarelesslikelytoemployNewCanadians.

Thewealthgapgrows. Therevitalizationofthecitycoresstops. Theagedemographicbecomesolder. Healthservicesareunderstresscausingwaittimesto

increase,publichealthtogetworse,andmedicalrecruitment

tosuffer.

Thereisreducedinterestinlocalelections. Theenvironmentsuffers. ThereisachangeinResearch&Developmentfocusinthe

universities.

Thereispressureonconcernedcitizenstoaddresssocialproblems.

Commutingtimeinparticulardiminishesthesenseofcommunity,whichimpactsartsandculture.

Theartsandculturearelesscollaborativeandoperateinanincreasinglycompetitivefundingenvironment.

Theartscommunityareghettoisedandlessabletoretainorrecruitnewmembers.

Fromanindividual,personal

perspective,KitchenerWaterloo,

CambridgeandGuelphareinter

connected;youdontreallyhavethatstrongsensethatyoureleaving

Guelphandthentravellingand

endingupinCambridge.Ifpeople

dontrealisethat,theymissthe

opportunityforthesetypesof

experientialconnections.Itcouldbe

areallyrichcollaboration.

ScenarioParticipant

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WATERLOO REGION

RECORD

GUELPH

MERCURY

HEADLINES FROM 2009 - 2020Council approves construction of

new housing south of Kitchener

- JANUARY 2010

Unemployment higher than

Provincial average

- APRIL 2011

Public demands more GO

Buses, Guelph, KW, Toronto

- MARCH 2012

Councillor blames deficit for

restrictions in local services -

SEPTEMBER 2014

Top cop fears increase in

gang violence

- MARCH 2016

Water group opposes

new development

- OCTOBER 2017

Housing shortage forgrowing population

- JULY2019

Election turnoutlowest ever -

NOVEMBER 2020

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A

B

20092012 20132016 20172020

Social Noexpansionortransformationofpositivecommunityidentity

Intensivedrivebystatusquoaffectsarts,urbanplanningetc,asthecommunityleadersbecomemorerigid

Crisispointsinviolence,poverty,disease,crime,community,reputation,pride

Noadaptivesocialservices,whichleadstocrisis,vulnerability,violence,dropouts

Nosenseofbelongingandreinforcementofnegativestereotypes

Policiesrestrictingimmigration

unwelcomelaws

EconomicNewtechnologyleadsto

significantchangesin

telecommunications

industryworldwide,and

hasahugeimpactonlocal

companies

Lossofeconomicvitality,particularlyinthelocalfoodeconomy(lossofurban/ruralcohesion)

Localunemploymentincreasespovertyfornewimmigrants,thereismoreeconomicdisparityandgreaterdemandonresources

Flightofkeycapital(humanandfinancial)

Communitylosesconfidence,Innovationbrandlost

Decreaseincommunitysupportprovidedbylocalcompaniesanduniversities

Significanterosionofthetaxbase

Environmental Watercrisis

Sewageprocessingproblem

Drasticwaterrationingforhomeandindustry.Agricultureaffectedbydrought:lowermeatproductionandcropyields

Healthproblemsrelatedtoworseningair/waterresources

Increasedpressurefornewhousingdevelopments

Reductioningreenspaceinthecities(parks,recreationalfields)andoutsidethem(agriculturalland,protectedareas).

Lackofaccesstogreenspaceimpactingqualityoflife

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LongWayHome

WaterlooRegion,October2020

At1:30intheafternoon,anannouncementinterruptedNathalie'stourofJarvisCollegiateInstitute,thefourthToronto

secondaryschoolshe'dvisitedthatday.

"Superintendent Wlodarska, please contact the main

office right away. Superintendent `Wlodarska,please contact

themainoffice."

Sheturnedtotheprincipal."I'msorry.I'dbetterfind

outwhat'sup.Probablysomeirateparent."

The principal, a young man new to the job and no

doubteager toimpressher,nodded,but she couldsensehis

disappointment."Ofcourse."

They retraced their steps to the office. The secretary

disentangledherselffromagroupofstudentswithpinkslipsin

their hands. "My apologies, Superintendent, your admin

assistant just called to say there's an urgent message from

yourson'sschool."

Nathalie tensed. "Thank you. Is there a phone I canuse?"Hercellphonedidn'tworkinsidetheschool.

Theprincipal said,"Usemyoffice."Heusheredher in

andleft,closingthedoorbehindhim.

She dialed the number quickly. She'd made the call

more times than she liked to remember in the past year.

"JacobKlein,please.It'sNathalieWlodarska."

Afterabriefpause,Jacob,theprincipalofTom'sschool,

cameon."Nathalie,I'msorrytobotheryou"

Shecuthimoff,heranxietyrising."What'sup,Jacob?"

"TherewasanincidentwithTomatlunchtime.Heleft

theschoolandhasn'treturned.Ithoughtyoushouldknow."

Istillhavesomefeelingsof

isolation.Thehugefamily

connectionsarenothere,theyrenotautomaticsoyou

havetobuildthem(atchurchor

intheneighbourhood),andyou

wantthoserelationshipsfor

yourchildren.

ScenarioParticipant

Iremembernoticingthat

theresneveranybodyofcolour

inmykidsswimmingclasses.

Never.SoIaskedwhy?One

reasonisbecausetherearenosinglegendersessionsinthe

pool,andtheresnoprivacyin

thechangerooms.Thisisa

questionaboutwhetherwetruly

honourothercultures.

ScenarioParticipant

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Assheposedthenextquestion,she

reviewedthe rapidtransit schedule inher

head.If shehurried, shecouldcatchaGO

train to GCKW in half an hour. "What

happened?"

"I'm investigating right now, but it

seems Tom got into an argument with a

couple of girls outside the school, said

some inappropriate things. One of them

reactedbadly,herboyfriendgotinvolved

"

"Wasthereafight?"Itwouldn'tbe

uncommon.Tomhadbeendiagnosedwith

ADHDseveralyearsagoandhadbeeninaspecial behavioural class for eighteen

months prior to entering high school. He

had anger management problems and of

late, had shown signs of depression. The

highschool'sresourceswerestretched,and

inNathalie'sview,Tomwasnotgettingthe

attention he needed, but she understood

theschoolboard'slimitations.

"A few punches thrown on both

sides.Thenacrowdgathered.I'mafraidit

sounds like they turned on Tom. He took

off."

"In what direction?" If he'd gone

home, she could call, reassure him and

finish her tour here. It would be hard to

rearrange, given her hectic schedule, and

shehadaresponsibilitytovisiteachofthe

schoolsshesupervisedtwiceperterm.

"We're not sure. He headed east,

butnoonereallypaidattentionandbythe

timeIheardaboutit,he'ddisappeared."

"Thanks,Jacob.I'lltrytoreachhim.

If I can't, I'll be on my way immediately.

OnceI'moutofthebuilding,youcanreach

meonmycell.Youhavethenumber?"

"Yes.We'llcallifwehearanything.

Andpleaseletusknowifyoulocatehim."

"I will." She rang off, then dialed

home.Afterfourrings,shegotvoicemail.

She hurried out, apologizing to the

principalassheleft."I'llgetDonnatobook

anothervisit."

She hailed a cab outside. It took

fortyminutestoreachtheGOstation,forty

minutesforhertocurseTom'sschooland

the job that took her so far from thesuburban sprawl where she lived. She

should havemoved toTorontowhenher

husband died. The schools here had

superior resources to deal with special

needsstudents,especiallyatthesecondary

level, and Tom could have had the

supportsheneeded. In Toronto, itwould

alsobeeasiertoobtaindecentfood,fresh

organic produce. Such produce was

increasingly scarce in GCKW, and she'd

recently read a study suggesting the

chemicals in commercial produce and

processed foods might well exacerbate

Tom's condition. Yes, she should have

movedtoToronto.Butrightafterhisfather

died, she'd thought consistencywouldbe

goodforTom.Wrong,wrong,wrong.

At3:00, she boarded the GO train

to the suburban sprawl which included

Guelph, Cambridge and KitchenerWaterloo.Thefourcitieshadamalgamated

eightyearsagointoGCKW,theacronymas

anonymousasthecommunity'scharacter.

As the trainsilently spedwest,she gazed

gloomily out the window. The only

noticeable change leaving Toronto was

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thattherewerefewernewbuilding,fewercompanylogos,less

signofeconomicprosperity.Itnolongerfeltlikeleavingacity

for the country.The fields that remainedheldno lushcrops.

Thefamilyfarmshaddisappearedorstoodvacantandderelict.

She shook her head, depressed by how quickly things had

changed when the economy of the region plummeted. So

manymajorcompanieshadmovedtheirheadquartersoutof

GCKW.Eachofthefourcitieshadsuffered,butthepopulation

had continued to grow. It was one of the largest bedroom

communities in North America, miles of dwellings,

interspersed with a few small businesses, mostly service

industry, schools, a couple of hospitals, insufficient for the

population, and of course the universities, enclaves of

privilegedlearning.

She tried calling Tom again, with no luck. Then shecalledhistwoclosestfriends,withthesameresult.Voicemail.

Nodoubt theirparentsworked elsewhere too and the boys

would not be home from school yet. Her anxiety mounted.

TheyshouldmovetoToronto. Itwasn'tdoingTomanygood

staying inGCKW, eating garbage out ofmachines at school,

gettingintofights.InTorontohecouldgotoabetterequipped

school. And she wouldn'tbe so far away. Even if housing in

Torontoproperwasvirtuallyunaffordable.She'djusthaveto

findaway.

ThetrainpassedthroughlittleVienna,anareaonthe

east edge of Cambridge populated largely by people of

Europeanextraction.Thehousesweresmallandneat,butall

toosimilar:anoldstylekeepupwiththeJonesescommunity.

Stillitwascheerfulcomparedtothedowntownghettos,which

housed the growing populationsofpoor immigrants. One of

thefalloutsoflosingsomanythrivingbusinesseswasthatthe

vibrantmulticulturalismhadfragmented.Thewealthylivedin

discrete suburban enclaves and instead of mingling and

celebrating their diversity, the ethnic communities had

becomemore isolated, each taking care of theirown, or, inmanycases,failingtodoso.

Severalyearsagopoliticalcandidateshadcampaigned

onpromises tomakeGCKWasamodelofculturaldiversity.

Nownooneseemedtocare.Voterturnoutatthelastelection

had been pathetic, and no wonder, the candidates' visions

TheCountrySidelineis

supposedtoaboundaryasreal

asthecoastline,butsubdivision

buildersbuildwideroadsthat

leadsomewhereandcreatetheexpectationofmoregrowth.

ScenarioParticipant

Theresalotofevidencethat

kidswhoarentexposedtonatureareexperiencing

psychologicalandmedical

problemsitscalledNature

DeficitDisorder.

ScenarioParticipant

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were narrow, pinched, just like the

economy.Thebiggestissuewasthelackof

resourcestodealwiththeoverpopulation.

The best and brightest from the area, as

wellasalltheuniversitygraduates,moved

elsewhere. The arts suffered. Local

theatresandgalleriesshutdownandmany

members of the oncethriving creative

community relocated. It was difficult to

attract doctors; wait times at hospitals

wereappalling.She knewtoowell. Ithad

taken months to get Tom diagnosed and

they were still waiting for him to see

psychologist. She had to move. No

question.

The trainwas passing through the

derelict downtown of old Cambridge. It

being a hot day, people were on the

streets,meandering andchatting, a rough

lot, downatheels, a mix of white, black

and Asian. Most of them probably

unemployed. Rumor had it this had

becomesomethingofacriminalhotbed.

Catching sight of a familiar figure,

she caught her breath. Was that really

Tom,miles from home?Themopof dark

air,tallhunchedformandblack,oversized

Tshirtconvincedher.Sheroseunsteadily.

The next stop was only a few minutes

away, but her car was at the South

Kitchener station and she needed it. She

stood twisting her hands together as the

trainracedonwardandTom,ifitreallywas

Tom,fadedintothedistance.

She rode the train to her station,rushed off and leapt into her car.

Fortunately traffic was light. Most people

used the excellent transit system in the

area.Normallyshedidtoo,butshe'dbeen

latethismorningandnow,itseemed,she

waslateagain.

She tried calling home again,

knowing itwasuseless.He couldnothave

gothomethatquickly.Shemaneuveredher

way onto King Street and headed south

towards Cambridge, passing unfamiliar

streets, rundown houses, unchaperoned

children. Finally she reached the place

where she'd seen Tom. She drove up and

down,thenbroadened the areaofsearch.

Nosignofhim.Her head throbbedasshe

drove on, aimlessly. She called the school

again, but they'd heard nothing. Heading

back north on King Street, she passed

through the disintegrating cores of

Kitchener and Waterloo. Pausing inConestogaMall's desertedparking lot, she

dialedthepolice.Asexpected,theytoldher

theycouldn'tspareanyofficerstolookfora

boy who had only been missing a few

hours. Hewas a teenager, right? Probably

hanging out with friends, they said.When

shepersisted, the sergeanttoldhertocall

back if she hadn't found him by morning.

He couldnt promise anything, their

caseloadswere backed up, but they could

put out a call if anyone sawhim. But not

untiltomorrow.

As dusk fell, she headed towards

home.Ithadbeenyearssinceshe'ddriven

through so much of the city and it

depressed her immeasurably: too many

peopledoingnothing,inalmosteveryarea.

Andsofewgreenspaces;itwasanendless

concrete jungle.At leastuntil she reached

the neighbourhood where she now lived.They'd moved from the friendly Polish

enclaveinnorthKitchenerwhereTomhad

been born, when she took the job in

Toronto. Their old neighborhood had

started going downhill and with her new

salary, they'd been able toafford a larger

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house,withayard,inNewDoon,oneofthewealthierpartsof

GCKW.Sometimesshemissedtheoldhouse,andthegarden

whereshe'dgrownherowntomatoes,whenwaterwasn'tin

suchlimitedsupply.Certainlyshemissedthewarmthofthat

little community, the evenings sitting on porches, the

backyardgettogethers.Shebarelyknewherneighboursnow.

Nolightsshowedinthehouse,butthefrontdoorwas

unlocked. She paused in the front hall. "Tom?" she called

hopefully.

Noanswer.He'dprobably forgotten to lockthe door

whenheleftin themorning.She'dgivehimhellaboutthat,

whenshefoundhim.

Sheheardasoundfromupstairs;herheartsqueezedtight."Tom?"Sheranupthestairsandintohisroom,buthe

wasn't there. Then she heard a crash from the bathroom,

skitteredacrossthehallandflippedthelightswitch.

Tomslumpedonthefloor,hiseyesclosed,something

athisside,somethingshecouldn'tcompute:asyringe.

"Tom!"Shekneltbyhim,herhandsshaking."Tom,oh

Tom,areyouallright?"

His eyes fluttered open for a second, then he

shuddered.

"Jesus, Jesus." She stabbed911 onher cell phone. "I

need an ambulance. Immediately. My son's unconscious

Halfanhour?That'stoolong.Can'tyoucomefaster?...Idon't

know,maybe a drug overdose. Please, please hurry!" She

spitoutheraddress,thenbroketheconnection.

Shesatonthetiledfloor,cradledinhisheadinherlap,

andwaited.

Ihaveabeautifulwebof

friendsandfamily,andeveryone

shouldhavethatitscrucial.

ScenarioParticipant