Elora Greenspace

For roughly 80 years, this corner had a very different purpose. Beginning in the 1930s, it was home to a gas station. Cars came and went, fuel was sold here, and the corner served movement.

Then, in 2012, the Elora Business Improvement Area, the Township, and members of the community worked together to transform the site. I became the Elora Greenspace. Look around. There isn't much building here, and that's precisely what makes me interesting.

In a downtown where land has considerable value and buildings sit close together, this corner was deliberately made into a place where people could stop and gather. There are places to sit, gardens and landscaping that soften the intersection, and public art that appears throughout the space, such as the iconic “Tall Man” and works associated with the Elora Sculpture Project. Festivals and community activities spill into this area. And perhaps most importantly, people can simply be here without needing to buy anything. Places like this are sometimes described as third places. A third place is a space outside of home and work where people can meet, spend time, and feel connected to their community. A place like me can be especially valuable because I create low-barrier opportunities for casual interaction, social connection, and belonging.

Planners often use the term “public realm” to describe the spaces we experience collectively: sidewalks, streets, parks, plazas, trails, and other places between buildings. Those spaces influence how a downtown feels just as much as the buildings themselves. Think about what happens when somewhere to pass through becomes somewhere to pause. You notice the storefronts, run into someone you know, sit down, and stay a little longer.

Small public spaces can have an influence far beyond the size of the property they occupy. My own story is written directly into the change from gas station to gathering place; from a corner organized around serving a vehicle to one organized around serving a person.

Before you continue, look west along Mill Street West. This is the intersection where Mill Street East turns into Mill Street West. The buildings ahead sit tightly against the sidewalk, creating the enclosed Main Street character that has come to define this part of Elora. Walk a short distance west toward 43 Mill Street West.