QUEEN STREET COMMONS SET TO RE-OPEN

The Working Centre’s Queen Street Commons Café in downtown Kitchener is set to reopen this spring after a six-year hiatus. The cafe closed its doors in March 2020 at the start of the pandemic and has remained shuttered as the non-profit organization focused on changing priorities for the communities it serves.  

In 2024, The Working Centre began planning for the reopening, including upgrades and a layout change. Cassandra Polyzou, community tools and enterprise hub lead at The Working Centre, said that, as with any renovation, there were unexpected challenges that pushed the reopening into 2026. 

“Anyone who is working on renovating a small business knows that we all face challenges. Everyone is trying to do their best. But it has meant that the process has been slow,” she said. 

Queen Street Commons opened in 2006 as a third space for the community, regardless of income. Polyzou said the goal is to be that third space again and bring the community together. 

“The space is going to look different…We’ll be able to do things like film screenings and concerts in the space,” she said. “It’s refreshed, but it certainly still is going to feel like the Queen Street Commons that we’ve all known and loved.” 

There is no set opening date yet, but Polyzou said the cafe has two concerts scheduled in March to welcome people back to the space. 

 The Queen Street Commons is hosting The Boo Radley Project on Mar. 6, 2026 and I, the Mountain on Mar. 7, 2026. The cafe is hoping these big launch events show people the new space and what can be done with it. 

Downtown Kitchener has changed in the six years since Queen Street Commons closed. Conestoga College’s two downtown campuses opened and closed, multiple new condominium and apartment buildings have opened, and many major employers have opted to continue with remote work instead of renewing their office leases.  

There has also been a significant increase in the people experiencing homelessness across Waterloo Region, including the 100 Victoria St. encampment across from The Working Centre’s recently opened Making Home space at 97 Victoria St. Polyzou said the changes are a motivator to bring back the spirit of “radical hospitality” that Queen Street Commons was known for. 

“Queen Street Commons was always a place for everyone. Things have changed, and the need is very much there. We hear it from people all the time who say they miss this kind of space that is really a bridge across communities that brings diverse people to sit at tables beside each other and share food and coffee,” she said. 

When it opens, the cafe will continue to offer affordable and vegetarian menu items, including coffee, baked goods, and soups. Polyzou added that volunteering opportunities will also return to the cafe. 

“We know that people have missed that opportunity. It’s such a gift. Or maybe they’ll just come for a bowl of veggie chilli and a cup of coffee, and that’s great,” she said. 

COMEUNITY CONNECTS GARDENERS IN KW

ComeUnity Roots Garden is one of over 80 community gardens that are part of the Waterloo Region Community Garden Network. 

Located in Kitchener near the Iron Horse Trail behind Willow River Park, ComeUnity Roots Garden is working to address food insecurity with an emphasis on community. 

ComeUnity Roots Garden is distinct from other community gardens in that gardeners work together to care for and maintain the garden as a group to grow organic foods for themselves and the community.  

While many of the more traditional gardens operate individually, with each gardener responsible for their own plot of land, ComeUnity Roots Garden is one large communal plot. 

“When I started gardening, I didn’t really know much about gardening, and what I learned, I learned by talking to people,” Rebekah Haynes, ComeUnity Roots Garden coordinator, said. 

For those who are part of the garden, the communal effort to grow food often provides an opportunity for experienced gardeners to teach newer gardeners about food security and sustainability. Through this exchange of knowledge, gardeners can gain the skill and confidence to grow their own food. 

“This seems to be a great way to build community. I’m very passionate about food security, and, doing things the way we do, it allows new gardeners to come in and learn. And it allows gardeners who have knowledge to share…so it’s very community-oriented,” Haynes said. 

In terms of splitting up harvests, Haynes said the gardeners split things evenly or based on interest.

Anything left over is donated to one of five different organizations that feed people in need, such as Maurita’s Commissary Kitchen through The Working Centre.

With the price of food continuing to increase, Haynes said a community garden is a great option for people who are low-income. 

“For people who are low-income, the food that’s available is, unfortunately, the stuff that not only contributes to bad health, but it actually contributes to [bad] mental health,” Haynes said. “We have so much stuff that’s processed and full of preservatives. And humans were not meant [to eat] that way.”

Haynes, who is low-income and has a disability, said accessing more natural foods was an extremely important component of her health journey. 

“When you start and you’re able to eat food that is local, that’s just been picked, it’s not traveling thousands of miles and being sprayed with stuff…there’s all those things that just make such a huge difference,” Haynes said.

Haynes said the benefit of the community garden goes beyond food security. 

“I see a world right now where, unfortunately, because of so much going on, both in the news and in people’s lives, the world is becoming a little bit toxic,” she said.

For the gardeners at ComeUnity Roots Garden, the garden is a space to connect with others and connect with nature. 

“We can celebrate our triumphs together, and, if something goes wrong, we kind of hold each other up,” Haynes said.

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