Blog by krista

BEFORE As many of you probably don't notice anymore smoking in bars, entrances, and other places has mostly disappeared. All you have to do is go to Europe and you appreciate the smoke free environments we enjoy in Canada. However, this industry shift took a very hard toll on Tobacco farmers in Ont...

Don't worry I am not from Toronto, I don't pretend to be able to magically solve all your problems, but I understand your problems and hope to help you through any process related to your agritourism project. I recently attended a talk by Becky McKray about small town rural businesses. She said that...

I might be unpopular for this post but it probably needs to be said.  I will preface this post by saying, I grew up on a farm (dairy and chicken) and I understand the idea of industrial farming as well as any other farmer. With the whole pig scandal perhaps farmers do need to look at their prac...

Zoning is a great mystery to many people. Zoning is  document set out by the provincial government which each municipality adapts to suit their needs. A zoning by-law outlines the rules of what kind of activities can occur on various properties. It helps to control growth and city organization....

My Dad was born, raised, had children, and will probably die in the same house. So you can image that with all that living a traditional farmhouse needs some upgrading. I struggle with the idea of tearing it down, but I know there is a lot of effort that will need to go into a major renovation. I'm ...

Woven Lea Farm - the ideal sustainable farm proposal - VELD architect 2008 

4 years ago my brother made a deal with his environmental professor at Ridgetown Agriculture college.  In exchange for guest lecture in her class about my thesis work, he was allowed to skip class to come to my arc...

I was recently introduced to a bit of Waterloo Region's history. Black Horse Corners, a once bustling small town with an Inn, tannery, fueling mill, pump shop, shingle mill, shoemaker and blacksmith shop, all of which are no longer present except for some remains of the old Inn which burnt down....

As the summer draws to a close and the vegetables in my garden are ready for harvesting its time to take some notes to create a better garden design for next year.  I already asked permission from my husband to make a bigger garden for next year! for those of you that don't know an architect, I...

I often remis on my cycling days in the netherlands. There was this great bar called the "Hemelches" meaning heaven.  The bar was located in the middle of nowhere, but clearly on a cycling path.  During my husband and my long rides (100km+) we often wish there was a perfect place...

That's what I felt like after biking 35km to the Fifth Town cheese factory in Prince Edward County. Designed by Lapointe Architect, it has been on my architecture bucket list for many years for a few reasons; it was designed by an architect; it gave me hope that an architecture career in a...