Recreation Facility Allocation Process Review
We're reviewing how we assign recreation spaces to ensure the right users are booked into the right spaces, and at the right times, in a fair and equitable way. This work is meant to respond to growing demand from the community and operational complexity. It will also support the upcoming opening of the South End Community Centre.
Meaningful engagement is essential to achieving this goal. By hearing directly from community members and staff, the project will be grounded in real experience and shaped by the diverse needs, challenges, and expectations of those most affected by the system.
How can I participate right now?
This engagement is now closed.
You can read a summary of what we did and what we heard during engagement and watch for the new process recommendations at council in March 2026.
Wow we engaged the community:
In 2025, we were looking for feedback from people and organizations who have booked, attempted to book space at our recreation facilities or from people that are interested in booking facilities.
We wanted to better understand the needs, perspectives, and priorities of people and organizations when it comes to:
- your experience booking and using recreation spaces,
- what you think an ideal booking experience might look like, and
- what would increase the transparency, equity, and fairness in our process and decision-making.
We started with a survey (open October 8 - 26, 2026) and invited some users to an interview. Users who were not contacted but wanted to share their experience directly with a team member were also invited to reach out to facilitybooking@guelph.ca.
Further reading
Phases
User experiences and needs
Help shape the future of recreation space booking at the City of Guelph!
We’re redesigning how we ensure the right users are booked in to the right spaces and at the right times in a fair and equitable way.
As a first step, we want to hear directly from community members and organizations to ground this project in real experience and shaped by the diverse needs, challenges, and expectations of those most affected by the recreation facility booking system.
Take our short survey between October 8 and 26, 2025 to share your thoughts with us.
Why participate
We want to better understand the needs, perspectives, and priorities of the people and partners who book recreation space with the City of Guelph. We want to hear from you on:
- your current space booking experience,
- what an ideal booking experience might look like, and
- what would increase the transparency, equity, and fairness in our process and decision-making.
What to expect from the survey
The survey will take about 10 minutes to complete. You may skip any questions that do not apply to you. Answering as many questions as possible will help us build a stronger understanding of community needs.
What we will do with your feedback
Your responses will directly inform the creation of a refreshed recreation space booking process, decision-making framework and policy recommendations. Participation is voluntary, and all information received will be treated with care and confidentiality.
Overlap Associates is supporting City of Guelph in collecting, analyzing, and reporting insights from our surveys, interviews and community conversations.
What we’re doing beyond the survey
In addition to a survey, we’re inviting people and organizations to talk with our team about their experience booking or attempting to book spaces at Guelph recreation facilities. These interviews will give us a more detailed understanding of the challenges and opportunities we uncover through the survey process.
If you have not been contacted for an interview but you would like to share your experience directly with a team member, please reach out to facilitybooking@guelph.ca.
EN
AR
TI
UR
ES
NE
ZH-TW
FA
PA
TL