URBAN ADVOCACY:
Urban Advocacy

From University onwards Catherine has applied her professional training to complex urban problems from the position of citizen advocate - often creating organizations to work on problems together. 

The volunteer work informs the professional projects. In 1978 she and Kim Storey organized a student ideas competition for adaptive re-use of the Don Jail. That led to a summer spent researching the history of King Street in Chatham, to show how the street would look restored to its founding appearance. Over the years in various capacities, collaborating with many others she has worked to civilize the Front Street extension, demolish the Eastern wing of the Gardiner Expressway, put Fort York at the centre of a new neighbourhood, revive Toronto's Main Streets. Frustrated by the loss of Ontario's valuable building stock, as chair of the Toronto Preservation Board, and later as a member of the Architectural Conservancy of Ontario executive, she campaigned sucessfully to strengthen the Ontario Heritage Act. She was key in bringing the Doors Open program to Toronto and seeing it expand across Ontario and Canada. 

She is currently working with several others to preserve the views to Ontario's Queen's Park.

Her volunteer work has been widely recognized and has attracted several awards.

DETAILS TO COME: Over the next few months we will be adding more information on some of the above mentioned projects.