Placemaking Toolkit

Have a great idea to activate public spaces on campus?

Have an idea to implement a placemaking project that brings people together on campus? Not sure where to start, find money or who to speak with about what rules you might need to follow?

You’ve come to the right place. Here you’ll find some things you’ll want to consider before you embark on the process. While we want everyone to take advantage of the wonderful spaces we have on campus to connect with others and create fun experiences, it’s important to know the right places to go for support so that you can take advantage of resources on campus and the approvals you’ll need to obtain to ensure your project is safe for campus people and property.

Placemaking projects support a thriving community by bringing people together to form friendships and cultivate social connections. Anyone can launch a placemaking project, and here are the simple steps to get started.

Check out the Placemaking Toolkit below for tips on how to create your own memorable placemaking at UBC Vancouver.

Getting Started

UBC offers many funding opportunities and grants to support community projects. Here are a few to see what suits your project needs.

Inspiring Community Grants

If your project sets out to foster community building and connectedness on campus, then this is definitely worth checking out! To be eligible for this grant you must be one of the following, a student, faculty, staff at UBC Vancouver, or neighbourhood residents of Musqueam, University Neighbourhood Association (UNA) or Acadia Park. Applicants can apply for up to 1000$ in funding for their projects.

Learn more about the Inspiring Community Grants.

Connected to Community Grant

This grant supports projects in partnership with local not-for-profit community organizations! To be eligible for this grant you must be either an undergraduate or master’s degree student at UBC. Applicants can receive 200$ to 1500$ for their projects.

Learn more about the Connect to Community Grant.

Chapman and Innovation Grant

The Chapman and Innovation grants are designed to help students work with a local not-for-profit community organization to test a new idea and take initiative in tackling issues affecting underrepresented populations in their local communities.

Learn more about the Chapman and Innovation Grant.

Global Fund

The Global Fund provides grants for all currently enrolled UBC Vancouver students for initiatives with an international or intercultural focus. Applicants can seek up to 2000$ through this grant.

Learn more about the Global Fund.

Walter H. Gage Memorial Fund

The Walter H. Gage Memorial Fund is for non-curricular student projects and activities that set out to enhance the reputation of the University.

Learn more about the Walter H. Gage Memorial Fund.

If you don’t see anything here that quite fits your needs here, you can visit Community Engagement for an extensive list of funding opportunities.

Some useful non-UBC grants to check out

The City of Vancouver Grants and Awards offer grants for Arts and Culture, Community, Green, Heritage, and Sporting initiatives!

Applying for approvals and permits is less intimidating than it looks — they simply ask you to clarify and organize the details of your project so that UBC can ensure your idea is safe and feasible to carry out.

Outdoor spaces at UBC Vancouver are overseen by the Film and Events team in Campus + Community Planning to ensure that they are used safely and that there are no space conflicts. Make sure the space you want to host your project in is available and feasible, but completing an Outdoor Event Application. The space is not available until confirmed by the Film and Events Office.

What kind of permission will your project need?

Your project will need the following if they contain any of these components:

Your placemaking initiative involves the installation of a permanent or temporary structure on the UBC public realm. See the ‘Simplified Guide to the Streets and Landscape Permit’ section below. Click here for more details about the Streets and Landscape Permit.
Your placemaking initiative has an event component where people will be gathering outdoors.Click here for information about the Outdoor Event Booking process.
Your placemaking initiative involves growing food. UBC supports food-growing and other community-managed gardens in the academic core of campus. To grow a food garden at UBC, you need to apply for a permit. Click here to learn more about the permit and submit your application.
Your placemaking initiative involves posting outdoor signage. Click here to submit a request to the Film & Events Office to place any signage or street decals.

Before you start, gather all the details about your project to submit a complete Street and Landscape Permit (SLP) application. This will ensure your application can be reviewed in a timely manner. Here are some details to consider in advance:

If you plan on doing an installation that alters the campus landscape, you will likely need to find a UBC department who can sponsor your project.
Start in advance. It can take several weeks for your completed application to be reviewed and approved.
The SLP application covers a wide range of development projects, including large-scale building construction and renovation projects. Therefore, some of the fields in the application form may be less relevant to your smaller scale placemaking project.
There are no costs or non-refundable deposits associated with the permit process, as long as your project will be under construction value of $250,000.
You’ll have to include a site plan to demonstrate what your project will look like. This can include photos, maps, drawings, and more. Provide all attachments in a single PDF document.
Make sure to clearly indicate where your project will take place. Include the address and mark the location on a map using UBC wayfinding or other online software like Google Maps.
Be specific about the dimensions of any structures, materials used, and impact on the surrounding areas. Please note that any sort of structure will likely need to involve an engineering report to ensure it is structurally sound.
Come up with a timeline for your project, including when the installation will take place and when it will be dismantled.
If existing trees will be affected by your project (i.e. you wish to hang something on a tree), please complete the Tree Protection Section for a Landscape Architect to create a plan for you.

Check out more information about Street and Landscape Permits on the C+CP website.

We hope this toolkit inspires you to start your placemaking project and sets your idea up for success.

Our team is here to help! We are glad to provide further guidance and answer your questions. Please reach out to us at info.utown@ubc.ca.

Here are a few examples of recent placemaking projects that animate and invigorate public spaces on campus:

Community Timelapse

The UBC Timelapse is an Inspiring Community Grant project from UNA resident, Kabir Hundal. Built and installed with the support of the UNA and UBC Campus + Community Planning, the frame was installed (with the help of an SLP) in front of the Old Barn Community Centre for one year.

Community members were invited to take a photo using the frame, and to submit it to Kabir. At the end of the year, Kabir put the photos together into a timelapse video that showed how the campus landscape changes over time and seasons. Check out the completed Timelapse Video .

Lights at Lee Square

Year-round, from dawn to dusk, images and animations are projected into the Raymond and Money M.C. Lee Square in front of the UBC Bookstore. The annual Lights at Lee Square design competition uses the plaza as a canvas for community-generated artwork. Have a great idea for a lighting installation project? Let us know!

Check out this year’s Lights at Lee Square Design Competition–the theme is “share how you celebrate.”

Thrive by the Fire

This annual placemaking event, held in support of Thrive month, temporarily turns Lee Square into a cozy space for community members to connect, relax and unwind, with toasty tables, chill tunes from Blank Vinyl Project’s student performers, and a mental-health resource fair.

Cherry Blossom Frames

Cherry blossom season is short and sweet, but probably the most-photographed time on campus. UBC Inspired often installs temporary wooden frames around key spots on campus, helping folks get the perfect shot of these pretty pink buds in bloom!

Tips for Planning your placemaking project

1. Keep things Lighter, Quicker, and Cheaper

Placemaking is meant to be an interim solution. By making your project “lighter, quicker, and cheaper, you can do more with less.

Lighter: Don’t try to do everything in one project. Think about how you can simplify things by focusing in on a few key aspects and goals.
Quicker: It’s possible to have a big impact in a short amount of time. A lot of successful placemaking projects take place over a matter of days or weeks.
Cheaper: Use inexpensive materials to reduce the cost of your project. At the same time, make sure you are conscious of the full lifecycle of the resources you are using and make a plan for how they will be reused or recycled.

2. Activate spaces that are under-utilized

There are many bustling, vibrant areas at UBC. The best placemaking initiatives are those set in the more forgotten spaces, like laneways or empty lots. Even if the location you have chosen isn’t the most beautiful spot, your project can help others see the beauty in the space you are using.

3. Engage diverse community groups

UBC is an international, multi-cultural university. Our campus community is composed of students, residents, staff, faculty, alumni, and more. For existing organizations, a good rule-of-thumb is to try to engage people who wouldn’t typically participate in your events and programs. As Erin Toolis discusses in Theorizing Critical Placemaking, this is an opportunity to lift up unique voices and build “more inclusive, participatory, and democratic communities”.

4. Catch people’s attention

Imagine that it’s a busy day on campus. People are rushing from class to class, or between meetings, trying to fit as much into the day as they can. Your goal is to get these people to slow down for a moment and engage with your project. The best way to attract their attention is to stimulate the senses—use vibrant colours to catch the eye, sounds for passersby to hear, and even food that smells good and makes people hungry. Art can be a powerful way to accomplish this, whether it is through live music, visual art, dance, or theatre.

5. Respect your neighbours

While it is important make a splash and catch people’s attention, it is equally as important to respect others who are working or studying around you. This includes being mindful of the amount of noise you are making, not leaving any garbage or equipment behind, and not getting in the way of people who are trying to travel across campus. It is also crucial to ensure the safety of your event or installation, which you will be asked to discuss while submitting your permits.