Community Engagement Tools

The team utilized friendly and appropriate tools to inform the community about the plan and to maximize participation. The following tools allowed the team to engage the community and other stakeholders throughout the planning process, allowing them to provide meaningful input, despite the pandemic.

Project branding was created for all outreach materials and presentations. The branding was based on the City’s official Brand Guidelines, including approved fonts, colors, and use of the City’s official logo. A unique project logo was used for all outreach materials to promote project familiarity throughout the planning process.

The City’s Facebook page and Twitter account were primarily used to share updates and events such as the project survey, online story map, and virtual community workshops. This also allowed residents to post questions and comments regarding the ORPMP. Additionally, the City of Ontario used their official city website to post project information, upcoming workshops, and the online survey link.

An online comment map was created as a supplemental input method that Ontario residents and stakeholders could use to highlight location-specific deficiencies and opportunities. It also provided the opportunity to categorize the type of issues or improvements identified on the map and allowed respondents to attach photos and include comments. All points were automatically geo-referenced and allowed anyone to see where others had similar issues. This platform allowed the team and the City to efficiently document and analyze comments identified by the community. Additionally, this platform was also used to provide project updates and events.