City Repair Ottawa’s Neighbourhood Activity Ideas

Here are some fun ideas you can adapt to use as an excuse to get together with friends and
neighbours, as street party activities or the focus of a festival. If you need assistance in finding
needed skills to execute any of these ideas, or ideas of your own, talk to City Repair Ottawa
about it. Email City Repair Ottawa at ottawa (at) cityrepair.ca. If you have ideas we could add to
this list, please share them with us. The ideas below are grouped into three categories based on
the estimated effort for successful completion. See our web site at www.cityrepair.ca for more
information about creating social capital and placemaking for your neighbourhood.

Easy

Hold a pot luck supper or barbecue.

A pot-luck is a great way to get to know your neighbours. Everyone loves food! Try pot luck
with a theme (local organic food, desserts, chili cook-off, etc). Get everyone involved. Those
who can’t cook can help by setting up and cleaning up.

Hold a sing-along.
A guitar or other accompaniment is nice, but you don’t really need it. If people are shy about their
singing voices, you may get more cooperation on the first try by starting with a holiday activity
that involves singing, such as caroling.

Plant gardens in dead space

Plant flowers or suitable food plants in otherwise waste space. Such space may be around hydro
poles, under the mailbox, next to the bus stop, the space bordering on the side or back of a garage.
Put in ornamental plants, annuals, edible perennials, whatever. See also Guerilla Gardening.

Invite some musicians to play

Find some local talent or invite a band to come to your neighbourhood. Link to Samba band,
others

Put up a neighbourhood notice board.

Put up a “quote-of-the-week” board.

Designate a place to share surplus garden produce, etc.

Collect neighbourhood information (“mapping”)

The City Repair Ottawa Toolkit includes an Asset Mapping tool.

Hold a neighbourhood barbecue/cook-out/picnic.

This is less ambitious than a Block Party, but will still bring people together for a community
event. Hold the party in someone’s front yard or in a nearby park. Depending on your situation,
you may want to ask for a street closure permit.

Blow bubbles: have enough to share.

Bubble soap is available in gallons (get lots of wands) OR get a box of the small wedding-size
bubble jars and pass them out).
Moderate effort

Practice “guerilla” gardening.

Guerilla gardening is taking over a waste space to grow useful or attractive plants. These spaces
exist in every neighbourhood. Normally, weeds grow there, possibly even weed trees, which
indicates how long the space has been left fallow. Potential Guerilla Gardening sites include
uncared-for city planters, the boulevard between the sidewalk and the street, dead space in the
back lane, etc. Guerilla Gardening can be as simple as throwing seed balls
www.guerrillagardening.org/ggtips.html.
into the median and letting the plants grow where they may or more organized by taking charge of
an area for the season. Choose plants native to the area.

Photos of some “guerilla” gardening taking place around Ottawa.

Note: Non-native invader species that are proven voracious spreaders should never be
used for ecological restoration.

Build a collapsible portable performing arts stage.

A stage is a great asset for some Street Party activities: talent shows, puppet shows, auctions,
musical performers.

Organize a nature hike

This could be at a city park such as the Arboretum or a field trip to Gatineau Park or another location of
interest.

Organize a block party

A little more trouble than a backyard barbecue, but much more liberating! The hallmark of the block
party is closing the street the length of your block, and taking the space over for people and activities.
Check with your local municipality for forms to apply for street closure permit and/or a permit for an
open fire.

Stand up for truth and justice!

Everyone dress up like superheros and search out good deeds to perform. Taking on a superhero persona
is fun and inspiring. Choose a name suggestive of your special talent. Emphasize the service aspect of
superheroes. If you want to get more involved, there is a superhero movement inspired by Ethan
Hughes, who has created a “Superhero Startup Kit.” See articles at
http://www.lostvalley.org/talkingleaves/node/114.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Real-life_superhero.
http://entomo.wikispaces.com/The+RLSH+Movement.
http://mydisguises.com/2010/04/16/real-life-superheroes-in-nyc/.

Do food art
Use marshmallow fluff as the glue to create a collage with seeds, small candies, bark, and other
items that create color or texture. Marshmallow fluff will dry if left alone for a few days. Clean
up is easy: just hose the kids down. (Best done out-of-doors!)

Hold an “exchange” party:

Trade clothing , cookies , perennials, vegetable garden produce, paperback books, etc.

Hold a lantern festival.

 Make lanterns and hold a parade around the neighbourhood. People can make and/or decorate their own
lantern shade. Some ideas for making lanterns:
luminarias (tin cans to hold candles): http://www.schooloftheseasons.com/luminarias.html
alternate: http://www.ehow.com/how_18198_make-tin-can.html

paper lanterns (no candles, please!) http://www.ehow.com/how_5373825_make-own-paper-

lanterns.html
.
floating lanterns (lit with tea lights, floated on lake or pool. Don’t light candles in these for use on dry
land)
shades: http://progressiveportal.org/lanterns/shademaking.html
bases: http://progressiveportal.org/lanterns/basemaking.html
fanfold paper lanterns http://www.funsocialstudies.learninghaven.com/articles/lantern.htm

Small glow sticks can be used as a safe light source. If anyone has suggestions for other simple,
inexpensive, & safe light sources, please share with us at ottawa@cityrepair.ca.

Lee Valley Tools sells a form to make an ice lantern. http://www.leevalley.com/en/gifts/page.aspx?

p=52307&cat=4,104,53200&ap=6.

Community clean-up
You’ll be cleaning up after the snow melts anyway. Why not do it together and turn it into a
party?

Organize a movie/video night

This can be indoors or out. Outdoor movies are fun for all ages. A video projector can show a
movie on a screen or any white surface. In downtown Ottawa, an alternative is to organize a
group outing to Centretown Movies. http://www.centretownmovies.org/

Start a neighbourhood book club

You can do this informally by sharing a book that you liked. Or get together for coffee and
discuss the book after everyone has read it. Once you’re all finished, you can “liberate” the book
by registering it on Book Crossing and “releasing it to the wild.” http://www.bookcrossing.com/
You can track the book to see where it goes and who reads it.

Find or create a traffic-free space

If you have a common space where neighbours can mingle away from traffic, you are lucky.
Organize ways to use it. If you don’t have a traffic-free common space, you can create a
temporary one. Arrange to close the street to traffic at a regular time, say, Sunday mornings in
July. How different is your neighbourhood without the cars? How does it affect the relationships
among the neighbours?

Hold an exercise session

Invite an instructor to give a demonstration of yoga, pilates, experimental movement. Many
instructors are willing to provide a demonstration class for a nominal fee.

Hold a dance night

Square dance, line dance, contra dance: if this is new to you, invite an instructor.

Decorate your bus shelter.

Use balloons, crepe paper ribbons, etc. as a temporary decoration for your local bus shelter. Use a
holiday theme, or your neighbourhood symbol.
Hold a fund-raiser for a local charity
Organize a specific event, or collect a nominal amount for some aspect of an existing event. One
neighbourhood in Ottawa sells tickets to vote in their pie-tasting event and donates the proceeds to
charity. Other ideas include raffles, auctions, car washes, or erecting a “voluntary toll” booth at
one end of your street. Local charities include the Ottawa Human Society, United Way, local
hospitals, or your local school council. There are many others.

Take David Suzuki’s Nature Challenge

Ten simple things you can do to protect nature. For the full list and more information on the
challenge, see http://www.davidsuzuki.org/WOL/Challenge/

Chalk or paint outdoor chess/checker boards.

Draw chess or checkerboards on the sidewalk, a driveway, or in the street. These can be as large
or as small as needed. You’ll need some pieces to play with. Get everyone involved in playing.
If this takes off, you may want to paint a board in a convenient location and build giant pieces to
play on it.
Ambitious, but worth it.

Start an interactive youth garden.

Run a summer mini-sport camp

Get the neighbourhood kids together for a summer activity: a sports camp! Could be soccer, swimming,
biking, etc. In the winter, try cross-country skiing, ice skating, or hockey at the local rink.

Neighbourhood not-for-profit tea house, coffee house, game nights, open mics, art
displays, etc., by the community for the community
The Portland City Repair Project began with a community tea house used as an informal gathering
place. Link: http://www.cityrepair.org/t-hows.html.

Replace asphalt with a permeable surface

Permeable surfaces reduce storm water run-off by absorbing the water locally. This keeps more of
the rainwater falling on your neighbourhood for your local plants and trees to use. It also reduces
the cost of storm sewer construction and maintenance, and cost of treating water gathered by the
sewer system. Permeable surfaces include gardens, lawns, pebbles, paving stones. Rain gardens
and swales are areas specifically designed to catch rainwater and hold it so it can be absorbed by
the ground. City Repair Ottawa can help you find further information and knowledgeable
volunteers to assist.

Build a mushroom garden.

Plant a tree
Planting a tree indicates optimism and long-term vision. You need to select a location for the tree, and
choose a tree that is compatible with the site and the way it is used. Depending on what is needed at
the designated site, you may want a shade tree, a flowering tree, or a fruit tree. Do you need to be
careful about water and sewer lines or overhead power lines? Contact your municipality for advice
about guidelines and regulations. A tree nursery can provide information on mature sizes and growth
habits of different types of trees. The list of landscape design considerations that the City of Ottawa
uses for city plantings may be helpful.
http://ottawa.ca/residents/planning/design_plan_guidelines/completed/regional_roads/corridor_compo/
roads_g_72_en.html. (Scroll down to “Road Edge Landscape” heading.)

Before you dig to plant a tree, be sure to find out if there are any underground utility lines at the
planting location. In Ontario, this locating service is free. Call Ontario One Call at least a week
before you plan to break ground. Call Toll Free: 1-800-400-2255 or visit online:
http://www.on1call.com/HomeDig.html

Planting a tree on public property: if you wish to plant a tree on public property, you should call your
city councilor’s office for information and advice.]

Make a neighbourhood skating rink

Paint the intersection.

If you’re thinking of real paint, be sure to take an inclusive approach in making the decision to
paint and deciding what to paint. This can take a year or more to get input from everyone and
narrow down the suggestions to a design that everyone agrees to. Don’t rush the preliminaries or
try to skip this step. If you’re not ready to paint, try drawing out your design with chalk. (We
have some examples of painted intersections in our photo albums. Go to www.cityrepair.ca, and
search the site for “Intersection.” There are also examples at www.cityrepair.org (Portland, OR).
Hold a tool exchange or create a tool library for the neighbourhood.

Hold a toy exchange or create a toy library for the neighbourhood.

Build a cob bench.

Make a place in your neighbourhood where people can meet and stop to talk and relax together.
Some research is needed to find a cob recipe that will endure in Ottawa winters. There are many
web sites with information on using cob. We have a photo essay on cob use on
www.cityrepair.ca. Search the site for “cob.”

Make a neighbourhood place to gather, cook, and eat.

Examples from our photo album: cob oven, 24-hour tea station.

Hold an outdoor exhibition of art and crafts made by people in your

neighbourhood.

Conversation starter street art

Use chalk to transform the pavement in your neighbourhood. Invite a street artist to demonstrate.
Kids love drawing with sidewalk chalk. Be sure to take pictures of your creations. They’ll
disappear when it rains. Link to photos of sidewalk artist creations.

Create a temporary gathering place.

Create a place to gather for one evening, for a day, or for a season. Get together on someone’s
front steps or bring furniture to the end of someone’s driveway. Just the fact of you sitting
together there will make other people curious and they’ll come over to talk. Make some tea to
share. If your first experiments are successful, you can try building a more durable temporary
meeting place.

Decorate a tree or structure

Choose a theme to represent your neighbourhood. Once you’ve agreed on a theme, gather or
make items to hang. These could be spoons, shoes, poems, plastic fish, or whatever takes your
fancy. The items used can be simple and temporary or complex and durable. The rack doesn’t
need to be a tree, but it would need to be something where passersby can stop and examine the
various items. Have a party to hang the items and dedicate your tree.

Create a mural or mosaic

Beautify the street. Develop and display a neighborhood symbol. If you need technical help,
contact City Repair Ottawa, and we’ll help you find some skilled assistance. Link to photos of
mosaics from Portland.
Demonstrations are also attractive for street parties:

Yoga demonstrations:

Music: search on line to see if there are amateur music groups in your area, or someone
who builds simple musical instruments.

Fire Dept
The local fire dept may be willing to bring a fire truck or rescue truck for a
demonstration.

Police Dept
Police car
Bike safety
Home safety and security
Neighbourhood Watch Presentation

First Aid demonstration from the local St. John Ambulance, Scouts, Ski Patrol, or other
safety group.

Humane Society
Dog training, dog safety for kids, etc.

Don’t forget your local experts: someone in your own neighbourhood may be prepared
to talk about their work, their hobby, or their volunteer work.