Table of Contents 6 2012 OVATION Awards Winning Entries

OVATION Awards Winning Entry
Communication Management
Special Events with budget up to $50,000
AWARD OF EXCELLENCE
Entrant’s Name: Sandra Desrochers
Organization: City of Mississauga
Division 1: Communications Management/Category 6a ‐ Special Events with budget under $50K
Title of Entry: Official Opening of Mississauga Celebration Square
Time Period: Planning: February – June 2011; Event Date: June 22, 2011
Brief Description: A special event in the form of a unique outdoor City Council Meeting, complete with official
ceremony and stakeholder celebration, officially opened the City of Mississauga’s new public square: Mississauga
Celebration Square, a state‐of‐the‐art, versatile outdoor event destination.
Business Need/Opportunity
The Civic Square, adjacent to City Hall in downtown Mississauga, had been the premiere location for City
events, but its existing physical and mechanical infrastructure was at life expectancy and the venue
wasn’t capable of supporting major events. The City hoped to create a vibrant public square where
people of all cultures, ages and backgrounds could come together to celebrate through participation in
free year‐round events and festivals. Extensive public engagement and research by consultants Projects
for Public Spaces (PPS) supported the City’s decision to proceed with redevelopment of the existing
square. The renamed Mississauga Celebration Square (MCS) was approved as the City’s largest
Infrastructure Stimulus Fund (ISF) project, which is a joint funding program between the municipal,
provincial and federal governments.
The official opening of Mississauga Celebration Square was our opportunity to unveil this new GTA
event destination. A one‐of‐kind protocol event would congratulate the project’s workers and
acknowledge the project’s leaders/funders from the three levels of government. A post‐ceremony event
would thank employees (who were without access to the area for the 21‐month construction period) for
their patience.
Intended Audience
To celebrate the completion of MCS, the audience for the official opening event included: (1) decisionmaking
politicians from the federal government, provincial government and members of City Council
who all funded the project, (2) GTA media, who could spread the word and develop a buzz around this
new event destination, (3) key stakeholders, including project consultants, planners, designers, workers,
and the City employees seconded to the project under difficult circumstances (due to strict ISF criteria),
and (4) general City employees who could not access their City Hall “backyard” for the 21‐ month
construction period.