President's Message

We have made some important inroads in developing a better relationship with our allied associations. In the Fall of 2022, I had an opportunity to meet the new executive director of Landscape Ontario and we have since enjoyed several discussions on how our two organizations may work together in increasing awareness of the value of landscape design.

Design Alliance Work
I also attended the annual meeting of the Construction Design Alliance of Ontario, where I engaged in important discussions with representatives about Metrolinx construction projections and support for GTHA communities. 

Joint OPPI-OALA Conference
Our joint conference with the Ontario Professional Planners Institute in London was a tremendous success. 

CSLA Grant
This past Fall, we received a Canadian Society of Landscape Architecture grant to allow us to prepare special videos spotlighting specific landscape architecture projects. We will be sharing more on that progress later this year. OALA Council has also endorsed the new CSLA’s Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (JEDI) action plan, which we majorly contributed to.

New Administrator
I am also very pleased to welcome Richard Stamper as our new part-time OALA administrator who will be assisting the staff team on advancing our strategic priorities over the next 12 months while Executive Director Aina Budrevics is on maternity leave.

Bill 23 Response
There has been a large response by municipalities and design professionals regarding Bill 23 and major changes to the Greenbelt, and I am pleased to see how many of our members contributed to our response to the province. Thanks to the energy of our members, staff team, and our PR consultants, OALA provided a strong position on the proposed changes.

April 2023 AGM
We are looking forward to sharing more on the strategic initiatives and our progress on the communications outreach at our upcoming OALA annual general meeting on April 27. This year, the AGM will be held virtually again, since this platform seems to bring the highest turnout from our members.

Steve Barnhart, OALA, CSLA
OALA President
[email protected]