City of Windsor Launches Strengthen The Core Initiatives For Pelissier Street Parking Garage Enhancements

Parking level theming in partnership with the Windsor Symphony Orchestra, along with a public call for artists to create two new murals

The City of Windsor is inviting Windsor artists to participate in creating two new public art installations in the Pelissier Street Parking Garage in downtown Windsor.

On Saturday evening, Mayor Drew Dilkens and Ward 3 Councillor Renaldo Agostino announced the public call for artists at a special “Classical in the Concrete” concert by the Windsor Symphony Orchestra (WSO), performed on the main level of the prominent parking garage downtown as part of the weekend’s “Fall in Love With Downtown Windsor” events.

“When we launched our downtown Windsor revitalization plan in the spring, we said we would focus on safety and security, cleanliness and activations to highlight the amazing potential of the area and attract folks to the core. I was excited to work with Councillor Agostino, Maestro Robert Franz, and our community partners on the “Fall in Love With Downtown Windsor” weekend, and I thank them for their creativity, passion, and commitment to Building Windsor’s Future. These two initiatives – naming the floors of the Pelissier Street Parking Garage in partnership with the WSO and launching a call for artists to create new murals for this space – are part of how we are working to Strengthen the Core and create opportunities for artists and vibrant places where people want to be. I look forward to watching these projects move forward and to returning to this space next year to both see and hear what we have created together.” – Mayor Drew Dilkens

Park in Perfect Harmony

As part of the announcement, the Mayor and WSO Maestro Robert Franz also unveiled plans for the “Park in Perfect Harmony” initiative. Planned for a spring 2025 rollout, the project will see all four floors of the garage named to honour composers Bach, Mozart, Beethoven and Tchaikovsky. Theming on each floor will include an audio musical component featuring the WSO musicians performing segments of popular classics from the composers’ bodies of work.

Public Call for Mural Artists

For the simultaneous public art component, the City of Windsor is seeking to commission one or more artists, or artist-led teams, specializing in mural design and painting, to create two permanent new murals that will be integrated into the main level interior space of the Pelissier Street parking garage. The commissioned artist(s) will be expected to complete the murals by May of 2025.

The murals must focus on one or more of the themes identified in the Public Call to Artists – Pelissier Street Parking Garage Murals Project (available October 1, 2024 on the City’s website), which is open to artists residing within the city of Windsor, Ontario. The works must be completed using exterior primer and paint formulated for use on concrete or masonry and must include an anti-graffiti clear coat upon completion.

The two wall spaces available for the murals include the following:

• Northeast Main Walls: 60.7 feet long by 14 feet high; surface area approximately 849 square feet.
• Southeast Main Walls: 117.3 feet long by 11 to 17 feet high; surface area approximately 1466 square feet.
• Interested artists have from October 1 to November 1, 2024, to complete their applications.
• The submission form will be available at www.CityWindsor.ca on October 1, 2024.
• The full budget for the project is $55,000:
• $20,000, plus HST, is available for the Northeast Main Walls mural.
• $35,000, plus HST, is available for the Southeast Main Walls mural.

Both the parking level naming and theming initiative as well as the new main level murals are intended to help beautify the parking garage that is frequently used by residents and visitors attending events, including WSO concerts and the Windsor International Film Festival (WIFF) at the nearby City-owned historic Capitol Theatre. The projects will also complement existing creative works and installations in the adjacent Art Alley, which was created in partnership between the Downtown Windsor Business Improvement Association, the City, and artists. That space includes graffiti murals, Indigenous art, lampshade art, light installations, and sculptures, and forms the backdrop for ongoing downtown events, including the Downtown Windsor Farmers’ Market.

The murals will help to beautify the parking garage, inspiring future innovative, engaging, and temporary uses of the space (for example, concerts, exhibitions, celebrations, poetry readings, markets, and more). These works of art will brighten up the parking infrastructure, create a new point of interest in the core, and connect to the already-established collection of community public art on display throughout downtown Windsor, including within Art Alley and the nearby WIFF Alley.

Both initiatives also tie into the City’s Strengthen the Core: Downtown Windsor Revitalization Plan (STC), which launched in April to address safety, security, and cleanliness downtown, while implementing measures and supporting activations to encourage new residents, businesses, and investments in the city’s core.

Included in STC’s seven initial action items are Action Item 4 – Place-Making, which seeks to encourage people and businesses to move downtown by investing in infrastructure and initiatives; and Action item 5 – Vibrant District, which creates vibrancy by attracting and engaging residents and visitors with unique amenities, gathering spaces, and engagement opportunities. The ongoing revitalization of the Pelissier Street Parking Garage strongly aligns with both action items and the overall plan.

Summary of Key Strengthen the Core Milestones to Date

• April 23, 2024 – Mayor Dilkens launched Strengthen the Core: Downtown Windsor Revitalization Plan.
• April 27, 2024 – City of Windsor and downtown stakeholders show what is possible with Windsor’s NFL Draft Party hosted in the core.
• May 13, 2024 – City Council unanimously endorses the $3.2M Strengthen the Core plan.
• May 15, 2024 – Windsor Police Service welcomes 41 new members to the Auxiliary Patrol Service of the WPS.
• May 21, 2024 – City launches recruitment for a Senior Economic Development Officer to oversee implementation of Strengthen the Core, and work to integrate the plan’s 7 initial action items into a cohesive framework.
• May 29, 2024 – Windsor Police Service, Windsor Regional Hospital and Hôtel-Dieu Grace Healthcare announce expansion of the Nurse Police Team to 7 days per week to support those struggling with substance use and related challenges; and the Crisis Response Team pairing frontline police officers with social workers to better support individuals in mental health crisis, with hours expanded to 7 days per week, from 7:00 a.m. to 1:00 a.m. to provide overlap coverage during peak hours and reduce the number of calls to which patrol units must respond.
• May 31, 2024 – Housing Solutions Made for Windsor launches Caron Avenue Site Expression of Interest (EOI), and two additional sites for development – former Grace Hospital Site, and the former Windsor Arena – with all three announcements representing development for prime downtown Windsor sites.
• June 3, 2024 – Development and Heritage Standing Committee approves proposed 16-storey, 88-unit residential development planned for Chatham Street and Caron Avenue.
• June 7, 2024 – Adventure Bay Family Water Park announces expansion of hours at the park, increasing access to the downtown community amenity.
• June 11, 2024 – City launches new Vacant Home Tax program to help increase housing supply and create more vibrant neighbourhoods across the city, including in the downtown core.
• June 11, 2024 – Council approves construction of the new City Hall Square Outdoor Ice Rink and gathering space, as part of the Civic Esplanade project, to create a versatile, year-round space for public events, announcements, and concession opportunities in the heart of downtown.
• June 17, 2024 – Windsor Police Service begins pilot of innovative local tech to provide real-time information on the location of WPS officers, and supply deployment of officers, adding in another layer of connectivity and bolstering community safety.
• June 18, 2024 – City Council endorsed and supported an expansion of hours at the City’s Homelessness and Housing Help Hub (H4) from 8:00 a.m. to midnight, seven days per week, including holidays; and expanded amenities offered at the site in partnership with the Canadian Mental Health Association – Windsor-Essex County Branch, Housing Information Services, and many community stakeholder groups.
• June 25, 2024 – City hires a new dedicated By-law Property Standards Enforcement Lead in the downtown core and surrounding area.
• July 29, 2024 – City hires a new Senior Economic Development Officer to oversee implementation of Strengthen the Core, and work to integrate the plan’s 7 initial action items into a cohesive framework.
• July 21, 2024 – City moves historic Streetcar No. 351 out of storage and to its permanent home at the riverfront Legacy Park, as part of the process to create a new waterfront beacon and gathering/event space downtown.
• September 28, 2024 – As part of the “Fall in Love With Downtown Windsor” weekend, the City announces plans to name and theme the parking levels of the Pelissier Street Parking Garage after famous composers, in partnership with the Windsor Symphony Orchestra, and launches a public call for artists to create two new murals for the main level interior spaces of the garage.