The city will begin testing the power and cost-saving potential of new hi-tech street light bulbs on James St. next week.

Three different technologies, including LED and fluorescent bulbs, will shine down between King St. and Lake St. during a six-month experiment.

That could eventually lead to "millions in savings" and help cut the city's carbon footprint, said Mayor Brian McMullan in an announcement Thursday at city hall.

A consultant will evaluate which technology shows the best energy and dollar savings for the city, then recommend whether it's worthwhile to convert all the city's 12,000 high-pressure sodium bulbs.

It costs about $1.2 million to power all 15,000 street lamps in the city, although 3,000 of those are decorative lamps that won't be converted.

Cutting costs isn't enough, however, said city transportation services manager Kris Jacobson.

The city has to gauge how effectively the LED and fluorescent lights throw light at night, he said. To that end, residents will be asked to highlight their favourite street-light options during the experiment.

Please see full story in The St. Catharines Standard by M. VanDongen at:

http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/PrintArticle.aspx?e=2732133

LEE, George - Legendary St. Paul Window Washer dies at age 88. Surrounded by his Cobblestone Gardens family, Mr. George Percy Lee died Tuesday afternoon, July 27, 2010. Born January 28, 1922, George began his iconic career at the age of 18. Loved by all who knew him, George was a fixture on St. Paul St., easily recognizable by his long snow white hair, his red Scottish tam and his Speedo. He was loved by merchants and customers alike and always had a smile and a hello for all he met. He continued his famous career for 44 years until a tragic accident on September 24, 1984 happened and changed his life forever. George was hit by a bike while crossing St. Paul St. and sustained a life threatening head injury. Unable to return home or to work, George went to live at Chestnut Court Retirement Home in Thorold and there he has lived for the last 25 years. Predeceased by his parents and siblings, George adopted the staff of Chestnut Court (now known as Cobblestone Gardens) as his family. Throughout his retirement, he maintained his love of his Scottish heritage, his prized tam and dancing girls. There will be a celebration of George's life held at Cobblestone Gardens, 10 Ormond St. N., Thorold on Thursday, August 5, 2010 at 7 p.m. All are welcome to join and bring any memories of George to share. Memorial donations in memory of George may be made to a trust fund set up to purchase a memorial monument for his final resting place to immortalize George as “The Squeegee King of the Window Washers Ring”. Cheques should be made to Cobblestone Gardens and can be arranged through the LAMB-BOCCHINFUSO FUNERAL HOME, 2 Regent St., Thorold. Online condolences at www.lbfuneralhome.com

City, Brock hiring arts centre experts

July 27, 2010

Please see full story in The St. Catharines Standard at:

Close part of the downtown to vehicle traffic

Posted July 20, 2010

http://www.scstandard.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2664485

Jayden Thorpe could barely contain himself when asked what he learned about cars Saturday morning.

"I know what 'chop' means!" the nine-year-old Rochester, N.Y., boy said.

"And what does it mean?" asked his grandfather George Thorpe, who brought Jayden and his younger brothers Trent and Chad to the downtown car show.

"It means the wheels have been lowered," Jayden said, pointing out a purple 1972 GMC truck. "I love the chopped truck. This is my second show, and I just love it."

The Thorpes joined thousands of others who braved the summer heat and crammed into a few blocks of St. Paul St. for the ninth annual Classic Car show Saturday. Cars, from the truly classic to the more modern vehicles, lined St. Paul, Queen and James streets.

"I just love the cars. I like to come out and show it off and meet with other owners," said Harry Hartford of St. Catharines, standing beside his white 1959 Triumph on James St.

Although walking about looking at cars might make little sense to those not passionate about automobiles, aficionados like Hartford talk about vintage vehicles with awe.

"I love driving the old school cars. No power (steering). It's great," said the member of the Niagara British Car Club.

Even those who don't own or display classic cars admired the craft involved in restoring and maintaining them.

"This is what is called a 'Rot Rod'," said Mark Gallant of St. Catharines, at the show with is son Matt and daughter Jessica, pointing to a truck that appears rather worse for wear.

Rot Rods, he explains are classic vehicles that are assembled without repainting or touching up the body. Sometimes the paint job is deliberately worn down to give the vehicle a much rougher appearance.

Cars were not the only attractions downtown Saturday. The Good Rockin' Tonight band was playing on William St. while on St. Paul St. Ryson's United Studios of Music hosted the third annual Fiddlefest.

"We didn't hold it last year because of the rain, but this year the turnout is great," said Anne Deyme of Ryson's.

There were 14 age categories with the winners all receiving cash prizes from money collected for a raffle during the competition.

Deyme said competitors came from all over Niagara and Southern Ontario with a few from New York state and one from Belgium.

Elizabeth Fritshaw, event coordinator for the St. Catharines Downtown Association, said the weekend event featured more than 500 cars and drew an estimated 5,000 people to the downtown.

"It's about bringing people to the downtown, highlighting the downtown businesses," she said. "It's just a great event. Our business owners love it, and the people who come down love it too."

Please see full story in The St. Catharines Standard at:

Please see full story in The St. Catharines Standard at:

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Only in St. Catharines can you find a combination of classic cars and fiddles in one fun-filled event. Downtown St. Catharines will hold its 8th annual Classic Car Show & Fiddle Festival on Saturday, July 10, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. along St. Paul Street. Over 400 classic and custom cars will line the main street.

A Sport Compact, Import & Low-rider area with Hop Off competition will take place at 2:30 pm on Queen Street, where spectators can watch cars jump to 50 inches off the ground.

There will be live entertainment at the Mansion House patio including Good Rockin’ Tonight, a tribute to Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis & Carl Perkins, from 1 1a.m. to 3 p.m.

The Fiddle Festival and Step Dancing competitions will run all day outside Silver Spire Church on St. Paul Street. A street dance will be held after 6 p.m., following the awards ceremony.

Miller’s Auto will be presenting the Big Toys Zone where there will be a cool display of heavy equipment, including fire trucks and police vehicles. There will also be activities for the whole family with interactive areas for the kids featuring jump ‘n’ bounce, jugglers, magicians and an area where kids can actually paint a car.

“We’re just so excited,” said Elizabeth Fritshaw, spokeswoman for the St. Catharines Downtown Association.

“It’s always such a great day downtown. And, admission is free.”

The downtown association encourages spectators to explore the 200 boutiques and restaurants, sidewalk sales and patios during the event.  For further information, visit www.stcathdowntown.com.

Please see full story in Niagara This Week by B. Day at:

http://www.niagarathisweek.com/print/841080

On the third floor, a man in a black body suit swings a mock battle axe.

Sensors around him connect to a large screen that captures his motion.

On the floor below, a device carves out a precise, 3D colour replica of a chain-link image.

This is just a taste of what can be done at a cutting-edge digital media facility that officially opened Friday.

It's called "the Generator at one", and is a $3-million expansion to the The Niagara Interactive Media Generator at 1 St. Paul St. in St. Catharines.

The goal is to create new business and link partners in industry, economic development and post-secondary education.

Ultimately, the facility aims to become an international destination for creating the highest-end digital interactive media.

"This was built on time, under budget and is a facility that exceeds its value," said Jeff Chesebrough, executive director of nGen, who spoke at the Generator's grand opening.

"We stretched every dollar as far as it would go," he said.

"And we honestly believe that we created a truly revolutionary facility here."

The opening also coincides with three new tenants at the three-floor facility — 211 Interactive, Brock University and Niagara College.

The hope is also to have students spin off their work into employment, business projects and other collaborations.

"This is exactly the type of venture Niagara needs," St. Catharines MPP Rick Dykstra, one of several who spoke at the grand opening.

"Now students interested in high-tech industries like digital interactive media will not have to leave the region to pursue their goals."

The new centre shows what can happen when diverse partners work together for a common purpose, Dykstra said.

"And this is (also) toward a goal of creating good jobs in a growth industry."

Work on the expansion started in January and was completed recently.

Funding for the Generator came from the federal government's Community Adjustment Fund.

In an interview, Chesebrough said there's the potential for dozens of new jobs as a result of the Generator, but it will take time as new business is created.

Please see story in The Welland Tribune at:

Regional council confirmed a plan Thursday to begin negotiations for a new police headquarters site, despite a last-ditch plea from St. Catharines Mayor Brian McMullan to build a cheaper building in his city.

Regional staff will now begin secret land negotiations for a new police headquarters site sources have told The Standard would be in Niagara Falls. Sources say one of the leading contenders is the old Cyanamid brownfield site north of the downtown near Stanley Avenue.

McMullan e-mailed a new consultant's report and a last-ditch plea to all regional councillors late this week, arguing a downtown Garden City headquarters is viable for Niagara Regional Police and cheaper for taxpayers.

The report from HOK Architects and Leach Mounce Architects examined the size, location and cost of police buildings in larger cities like Vancouver, Los Angeles and Boston and concluded Niagara could build a comparable headquarters on a smaller site, for $10 million less than the current proposal.

"Clearly, if large police forces such as these can locate a headquarters facility in an urban centre on sites the same size or smaller than 68 Church St., it is possible for Niagara Regional Police to do the same," he wrote in an appeal to his council colleagues.

Please see full story in St. Catharines Standard at:

Tim Collins was in a meeting on the top floor of a downtown St. Catharines office tower Wednesday afternoon when nature decided to rudely interrupt it.

An earthquake struck southern Ontario, Quebec and the northeastern United States at 1:41 p.m. and shook buildings from Montreal to St. Catharines. The shaking could be felt in Ottawa, Montreal, Toronto, St. Catharines and Muskoka. 

"Suddenly, our blinds in the boardroom actually started moving," said Collins, the general manager of Associated Brownfields, minutes after the quake, which measured 5.0 on the Richter scale.

"The building was swaying, and they were long sways," said Collins, who was in a meeting at 80 King St.

"So we all got up and looked at each other, wondering what to do ... so we just hit the stairs and got out."

St. Catharines fire officials reported no injuries or damage locally associated with the quake, but fire alarms were triggered and several buildings in downtown St. Catharines and Welland briefly emptied.

Please see full story in The St. Catharines Standard at:

The writing may be on the wall, but Brian McMullan is still holding out hope the message can be edited.

The St. Catharines mayor says he's not ready to throw in the towel and concede defeat in his bid to keep Niagara Regional Police in their current downtown headquarters.

"I guess there's always hope," he said Friday, sounding tired after a marathon meeting about the contentious issue the night before.

Niagara Regional council voted to begin negotiations with unspecified landowners for a new police headquarters site following a seven-hour closed-door meeting Thursday night.

Regional staff and councillors refused to say what cities were under consideration, or even how many sites remained in the running for the centrepiece of a police facilities renewal plan that will cost regional taxpayers close to $100 million.

But Regional Chairman Peter Partington did acknowledge after the meeting that keeping 110 James St. as part of the headquarters isn't on the table.

Acting police board chairman Doug Martin also said the current headquarters in St. Catharines wasn't on the shortlist of properties considered Thursday night.

Please see full story in The St. Catharines Standard by Peter Downs at:

Bottom line: I knew what I was doing calling it the performing arts thingy.

Anyway, don't expect a fancy new name for the St. Catharines arts centre. Indeed, for the time being, it might just be the St. Catharines arts centre.

Long term, though, the plan was always to put the name up for grabs.

Briggs said the city will likely form a fundraising committee early next year, with an eye toward selling the naming rights for individual elements of the centre as well as for the overall facility.

In case you're wondering, the Marilyn I. Walker name only applies to the school part of the joint project.

Not much else to report on the arts centre front. It's mostly boring stuff, like working to further formalize the corporate working relationship between the city and Brock. The two sides are also dotting i's and crossing t's on the contract to hire project manager Prism Partners Inc. Once Prism is officially on board, the process to hire an architect will move full-speed ahead.

There's also been little movement on acquiring the final piece of downtown property for the $100-million project.

Two months ago, the city gave what it characterized as its final offer to the owner of 240-42 St. Paul St. (old albums store, used book shop). While not officially launching expropriation proceedings, the city has recently made the owner aware the process is about to start.

"It never hurts to let them know we're going to move on it, regardless," said Briggs.

He said demolition on some of the acquired properties will take place this summer. The building at the corner of St. Paul and Carlisle, and the old UAW building at the bottom of Carlisle will likely be the first to go

Please see full column by Doug Herod in The St. Catharines Standard at:

http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2568817

Several downtown St. Catharines supporters hope the promise of a performing arts complex will open the door to year-round shopping in the city's core.

Whether or not to designate the core as a tourist area should be revisited in light of Brock University's arts school and the city's performing arts centre, which is slated to open in 2013, said St. Patrick's City Coun. Mark Elliott.

The designation under Ontario's Retail Business Holidays Act would allow downtown shops to open during the province's nine statutory holidays.

Elliott, a former downtown merchant, pushed for the designation two years ago and asked for staff to draw up a report on the matter. But it was shelved as information for council.

Any changes have to go through Niagara Region, which is the body charged with determining whether an applicant makes a sufficient case for designation.

With financing for the performing arts centre recently secured and concrete plans to bring the wine route to St. Paul Street, it's time to rethink giving downtown St. Catharines a tourism designation, Elliott said.

"There's certain things we have to do if we want to be linked to tourism in the downtown core," Elliott said. "You have to be open when the tourists are going to be down here, which would be holidays. You have to have hours that are accessible to tourists."

Please see full story by M. Beech in The St. Catharines Standard at:

http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2552592

Please see full story in The St. Catharines Standard at:

The announcement of $26.2 million in provincial funding for the downtown arts school was certainly great news for Brock University and the City of St. Catharines-- and hopefully the entire Niagara region is celebrating this initiative.

Much of the media coverage surrounding the news of this funding commitment by the provincial government focused on the revitalization of downtown St. Catharines; however, this project sets the stage for a much broader transformation of Niagara -- an outcome I'm sure our civic leaders such as Jack Lightstone, Rosemary Hale, MPP Jim Bradley and the others who have tirelessly championed this project, are well aware of.

Two things stand out with respect to this initiative that reflect very positively for the economic future of Niagara: greater collaborative governance and a move towards a more creative, innovative economic culture.

There is a growing body of literature that stresses a region's social and cultural dynamics are critical factors for a vibrant economy. There are the obvious tangible economic benefits of the cultural amenities themselves, such as art centres, theatres, restaurants and art galleries, etc.; however, the research reveals that social dynamics or "quality of place" -- the quality of life and a critical mass of cultural and entertainment activity -- creates a regional identity and instills passion and loyalty in its residents. This in turn enables a city or region to present a certain image that promotes the area and makes it more attractive to not only tourists, but to businesses and highly-skilled, educated "knowledge" workers.

Please see full story in The St. Catharines Standard by W. Dueck at:

The new owner of the portable building is Dixon Wininger. The original intention was to keep the booth going at the King/ Carlisle site. But the City of St. Catharines recently bought that property, nixing those plans.

No problem. Wininger took over the lease of the parking lot at St. Paul Street West and Westchester, and moved the portable there.

As a result, opening in the first or second week of May will be the Rockin' Grill.

Don't be fooled by the current state of the building, said Wininger. Plans are afoot for a serious upgrade and an addition.

"It's going to be a wonderful place," he said, and will bear no resemblance to the rather no-frills nature of the Carlisle/ King operation.

"There's nothing really like it in the city," asserted Wininger of the Grill. "There are little chip wagons and stuff, but there's nothing that looks high-end and serves good food."

The building will be painted a bright red and a similarly coloured addition will be attached shortly. Picnic tables will be brought in, providing plenty of seating for people munching on homemade hamburgers and hand-cut fries.

Please see full story by D. Herod in The St. Catharines Standard at:

James Wong expects the gamble he took a year-and-a-half ago is about to pay off .

It will take a few years yet, but word that the final piece of government funding had come through for a planned downtown performing arts complex was music to the St. Catharines restaurateur's ears.

Wong opened Coffee Culture on St. Paul St. about 18 months ago, pinning his business plan in part on a steady flow of future customers he expects the arts centre will generate.

"I did a lot of research and talked to the city about what's going on in the back (of St. Paul St.)," he said Thursday.

"This is one of the reasons why I opened this here."

A day earlier, the provincial government announced it will chip in $26.2 million to move its Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts and its Centre for the Arts into a renovated and expanded Canada Hair Cloth building at the back of St. Paul St.

The funding announcement was the final green light needed for a larger $100-million project that will see the City of St. Catharines build an adjoining performing arts centre.

Ideas for rejuvenating the city's ailing downtown have been debated for decades, since the core lost much of its pull as a retail shopping destination.

But officials and many business owners are convinced the joint performing arts project -- slated to open in 2013 -- is the key to breathing new life into downtown.

"It's the most important single piece, but it's part of an overall master plan," St. Catharines Mayor Brian McMullan said.

"We want downtown to be a destination again."

Please see full story in The St. Catharines Standard at:

A Brock University arts centre is getting $26.2 million in funding from the province, setting the stage for what some hope will be downtown revitalization.

St. Catharines MPP Jim Bradley announced Wednesday morning that Ontario will provide the money over four years to help build a new home for the Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts.

The school, currently on Brock's campus, will relocate to a new home within the Niagara Centre for the Arts, planned for downtown in the Canada Hair Cloth Building.

"Our investment in Brock University will help support St. Catharines' vibrant arts community, attract more people downtown, and generate economic development for the entire Niagara region," Bradley said in a statement.

"Many of you have waited with eager anticipation — some more patiently than others," said Bradley, hinting at the amount of lobbying and support from both Brock and the community.

"That advocacy has been heard."

Bradley's announcement was greeted with cheers and sustained applause from the roughly 200 people who gathered in the weedy parking lot of the former industrial building in downtown St. Catharines.

The school will house 500 full-time students and faculty members and will include space for a theatre, rehearsals, teaching and research studios.

It's considered an integral feature of the city's larger plan for a performing arts complex on St. Paul St.

The funding — the full amount requested by Brock — is part of the McGuinty government's new five-year Open Ontario plan to create new opportunities for jobs and growth.

In May 2009, Canada and Ontario each committed a maximum of $18 million under the Building Canada Plan to support construction of the Niagara Centre for the Arts.

Brock president Jack Lightstone said the next step is the hiring of the project manager — expected to be announced in three weeks.

Article ID# 2533830

Please see full story and video in The St. Catharines Standard at:

The province was expected to announce long-awaited funding Wednesday for a $42.9-million downtown arts school, a critical element of the city's plan for a new performing arts centre.

Brock University has been planning for two years to relocate its school of fine and performing arts to the former Canada Hair Cloth building. Progress had stalled, however, while officials waited on the province's reaction to a $26.1 million funding request.

Liberal MPP Jim Bradley was scheduled to make an unspecified announcement with university president Jack Lightstone at the proposed downtown school site Wednesday at 9:30 a.m.

"I'm not privy to the details, but my assumption would be it's the Brock funding," said St. Catharines Coun. Mark Elliott Tuesday night. "That would be huge. It's a good thing, a very happy day for St. Catharines and the downtown especially."

The arts school is an integral feature of the city's larger plan for a performing arts centre on St. Paul Street, long heralded as a major ingredient in downtown rejuvenation. The federal and provincial governments committed $18 million each towards the performing arts centre last May, and city officials hope to complete the project by 2013.

Please see full story in The St. Catharines Standard at:

A group of local arts boosters is recommending the city start planning now so that the arts groups will have enough money, management savvy and customers to afford the high-priced rents when the new Niagara Centre for the Arts finally opens downtown.

Without the advance planning, arts groups won't be able to afford to use the new centre, wrote cultural planning supervisor Rebecca Cann in a report to council.

At Monday night's council meeting, St. Catharines councillors approved advice from Cann and the Niagara Centre for the Arts Task Force, who outlined five objectives and 16 strategies for nourishing local arts groups.

The amount of money it will cost and the timeline for implementation will now be developed with "cultural stakeholders," wrote Cann.

"A future arts centre needs local artists to create original onstage performances, encourage our youth and inspire emerging artists," said Pablo Felices-Luna, artistic director of Carousel Players and a member of the task force.

"Our local arts organizations need to grow before the new facility opens."

Please see full story by M. Bergsma in The St. Catharines Standard at:

Local video game maker Silicon Knights is getting a $4 million grant from the federal government's Community Adjustment Fund.

The money will be used to create a new high end video game for the mass gaming market and will create 65 additional jobs.

"This is going to benefit Silicon Knights in ways that are profound and long-lasting," said company president Denis Dyack.

The announcement was made Friday by MP Rick Dykstra at the company's offices at 1 St. Paul Street in downtown St. Catharines.

Dyack said there are only a handful of developers worldwide making AAA products, or top tier titles. The company is hush hush about its new project, which will take an estimated two to five years to develop.

Dyack expected the project will translate to other jobs in the future.

"We are blown away and we're happy with the support we're getting."

More to come...

Please see story in The St. Catharines Standard at:

St. Catharines Mayor Brian McMullan cast the tie-breaking vote last week to keep discussion alive on a controversial computer model of the downtown.

Councillors were poised to kill the second phase of the 3D visualization of the core, saying it's an unnecessary gadget and not worth the $114,500 it would cost.

But St. Patrick's Coun. Mark Elliott, whose ward includes the downtown, said councillors were making a mistake by killing a project they haven't even seen.

"There is a total misunderstanding of what we are talking about here," said Elliott. "We are ready to vote without even seeing what this project is, and it's an important component of what we are trying to achieve in the core."

A recorded vote to defer discussion on the project until city staff can give councillors a demonstration ended in a tie. McMullan broke the tie in favour of waiting until councillors have seen the computer-generated model before making a final decision.

City planner Paul Chapman said the computer model of the core is an essential tool for a modern city that is trying to attract development -- especially major development.

In the old days, developers and architects would pitch major projects with miniature models of their designs, Chapman said. Today, those designs are created on computers, and architects expect to be able to use actual site data to do their calculations, said Chapman on Wednesday, as he and economic development director David Oakes demonstrated the technology.

St. Catharines paid Niagara College's Centre for Advanced Visualization $125,000 in 2008 for Phase 1 of the computer model, which it has already shown to potential developers, said Oakes at council. It was also used to persuade the provincial and federal governments to contribute $36 million toward the proposed arts centre downtown.

Niagara Region contributed $25,000 toward the first visualization phase and Chapman said the Region is offering to pay half of the second phase, in its efforts to support smart growth in urban centres.

Please see full story in The St. Catharines Standard at:

http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2525444

St. Paul Street Road Closure - from James Street to Carlisle Street -  Monday April 5, 2010

Garden Park Municipal Service Improvements - commencing Monday April 5, 2010

A groundswell of investment in St. Catharines by the province's liquor retailer could signal hope for a new LCBO location downtown, says the city's mayor.

On Tuesday morning, the Liquor Control Board of Ontario opened its latest big box store in the Garden City at the power centre on Vansickle Road at Fourth Avenue.

The 10,200-square-foot store follows the opening of the large LCBO on Glendale Avenue in August, and scheduled expansions of the Fairview Mall and Lakeshore Road locations.

St. Catharines Mayor Brian McMullan said he hopes the liquor retailer's focus now shifts to the city's core.

McMullan has been lobbying the liquor retailer for years to close its aging store on King Street and open a location on St. Paul Street.

The city's main drag is expected to be part of Niagara's wine route soon, as well as home to a performing arts complex in coming years.

"We know the King Street store is one of the oldest stores in their system. I think that also presents an opportunity for us to look at possibly relocating that to the wine route and St. Paul Street area," McMullan said following the grand opening of the Vansickle Road store.

"Those discussions are ongoing and I'm sure will continue."

Walter Sendzik, a member of the LCBO's board, said the liquor agency is sure to take notice of ongoing changes downtown.

"St. Catharines is on their map, and I think it's been a long time since St. Catharines has been on the map of government organizations like the LCBO," said Sendzik, who's also general manager of the St. CatharinesThorold Chamber of Commerce.

Please see full story in St. Catharines Standard by M.Beech at:

A St. Catharines-based Christian television channel now covers 50% of English-speaking homes in Canada after a recent expansion west.

Grace Television Network was launched earlier this month on Shaw Cable, which covers Alberta, Manitoba, British Columbia and Saskatchewan.

"It is a big deal for us in the west," said Nathan Thurber, business administrator for World Impact Ministries, which runs Grace TV.

"It is the largest cable provider in the west, so it's a big addition. To this date, there had not been another 24/7 Christian television provider on Shaw Cable."

The television channel, headquartered downtown at Queen and St. Paul Sts., is available across the country by satellite. With the new addition of Shaw Cable, it can be seen on cable stations in every province but Nova Scotia and Quebec, hitting even greater audiences.

"It does definitely expand our reach dramatically," Thurber said. "Now we're in safely over 50% of the English-speaking homes in Canada."

Grace TV, formerly The Christian Channel, was rebranded after it was purchased in June 2009 by World Impact Ministries.

The non-profit World Impact was started by Peter Youngren in 1976 as a ministry that focused on international Christian evangelical work.

For 15 years, World Impact produced TV programs from its base at Niagara Celebration Church on Scott Street. Those programs appeared on channels like Vision TV and The Christian Channel.

When World impact started its national digital channel in June 2009 and moved to downtown St. Catharines, it covered 30% of Canadian households.

The studio has 25 full-time and 20 part-time employees.

Please see full story in The Welland Tribune at:

Old retail neighbours, separated by disaster, are reuniting again.

Last July, a blaze ripped through two buildings on St. Paul Street near William Street.

It all-but destroyed well-known St. Catharines businesses Out of the Past and Liberty! Bicycles.

Eight months later, the stores have risen from the ashes to re-emerge at new downtown digs.

Out of the Past clothing and accessories at 340 St. Paul St is offering customers a "sneak peak" Saturday and has its grand opening May 1.

Meanwhile, a new Liberty is taking shape across the street at the Niagara Artists Centre's former site on 2 Bond St.

For people connected to both stores, the past months have been a blur.

"I've been moving things from one end to the other, and then it's off to The Home Depot, then back here and back there," chuckled Lizz Yakovich, co-owner of Out of the Past in St. Catharines, with store founder Tammy Ziegler.

"It's really exciting to be back on St. Paul Street," Yakovich added. "We miss our customers, they're our friends.

"We were here for a long time and I've worked with Tammy off-and-on since 1997.

"We have the same neighbours with Liberty and this part of St. Paul is completely different now and becoming quite the hub."

Liberty owner Kurt Gwisdek laughs ruefully that he's been put through the wringer getting his business restarted. Liberty had been at its original location since 1992.

For a while after the fire, Gwisdek used temporary digs on St. Paul and has continued customizing bikes at his home.

"We're getting there, but it's been the worst headache of my entire life," he said.

"It's so multifaceted; trying to maintain a business ... sort through an insurance legal battle and get the building up and running."

Gwisdek said he's eager to get back in the saddle and "take care of people" by the middle of April.

"Call me crazy," he laughed.

An official Liberty opening date hasn't yet been set.

Please see story in The St. Catharines Standard by D. Fraser at:

http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2508188

Downtown, city-sponsored road work will be mostly limited to paving King Street between Carlisle and Church streets, which will then be converted to two-way traffic, and finishing the two-way switch on St. Paul Street between Geneva and Court streets.

The wild card, however, could be the possible 2010 water-main replacement by Niagara Region in and around the core, including on parts of Court Street, Geneva Street, Welland Avenue and Ontario Street.

Tisha Polocko, who heads the downtown association, is anticipating a less intense construction season in the core.

Many businesses complained that non-stop road work on King Street and St. Paul Street last summer chased a lot of customers away from the downtown.

"We're expecting certainly less disruption than last year… and when there is work done, the transition will be smoother for everyone," she said. "I'm keeping my fingers crossed."

Sewer and water work aside, the Region will have less to do downtown this summer, said Mike DiPaola, Niagara's associate director of transportation engineering.

The Region and city are still deciding on two-way conversion plans for the complicated intersection of St. Paul, Geneva, Niagara and Queenston streets, so work probably won't start this year.

Ongoing maintenance of the aging Burgoyne Bridge will reduce traffic to one lane for a few weeks in May, DiPaola said, but otherwise, "it will be pretty quiet downtown as far as we're concerned."

Please see full story in St. Catharines Standard by M. VanDongen at:

There is a large mural on James Street at the corner of St. Paul Street. There is a little old gazebo-like structure in that abandoned lot. The mural has palm trees, some ugly pumped up creatures on a beach and a cow, plus a huge wave. Who owns that mural or wall? Why is it still there? What does it mean/ promote? Given that the city is trying to lure business and tourists and cultural centres there, do city officials truly approve of or find this mural pleasing?

A: The mural is a remnant of an urban muscle beach.

The concept took shape in 2003 when John Fulton, who owns the fitness club next door, leased the corner empty lot. He installed sandboxes, picnic tables, beach chairs, a basketball court and the beach hut with non-alcoholic drinks.

Fulton no longer leases the property and it remains in the hands of Jerry Kowal, who owned the Russell Hotel that was demolished on the site in late 1996. When contacted, Kowal said things were in the works for the property, but he wouldn't say what or for when.

City planner Paul Chapman said his department has received inquiries over the last six months related to potential redevelopment of the site. They have included talk of a small office building, a restaurant with above residential and a commercial space on the ground with above residential. None have lead to applications.

Several ideas for the property have been discussed over the years, said St. Catharines Downtown Association general manager Tisha Polocko. The association even talked about the possibility of purchasing the lot and having it made into a parkette that the city could take over.

She said it all came down to cost and what the owner thinks it's worth.

As for the beach painting, Polocko believes it's actually preventing the wall from being tagged with vandalism over and over again.

"But because it sort of represents a mural or some sort of artwork it's been left alone," she said. "I think that has some correlation because we know very well you see other large plain walls, they immediately get tagged."

For more questions and answers - please visit The St. Catharines Standard at:

The exhibit explores issues affecting the 1.8-million acre green space that stretches along the Golden Horseshoe from Rouge Park to the Niagara Escarpment. In all, 11 artists with ties to the greenbelt are featured, including local artists Elizabeth Chitty and Warren Quigley.

***

Onefortyfive director Troy Watson said the exhibition was the first major undertaking by his emerging 100-person gallery, which is located in the former Grantham Township Hall on King Street.

"We're pretty new and we felt the exhibit would be a high-profile event for us," he said. "It fits right in with the themes we want to pursue as a gallery."

Artist's Survey: The Greenbelt, in partnership with Friends of the Greenbelt and the Niagara Artists Centre, makes its final stop at onefortyfive gallery on 145 King St., from March 19 to 28. Gallery hours are Thursday to Sunday from noon to 5 p.m. For more information, call 289-969-3326 or visit www.onefortyfive.com.

Please see full story in The St. Catharines Standard by R.Gupta at:

Before the mallification and corporatization of North American retail, there was the 1950s.

Downtown St. Catharines ruled.

Sidewalks were so packed on Saturdays, pedestrians could barely move. Traffic gridlock resulted in a switch to one-way streets.

There were renowned chain stores like Eaton's, Zellers, Kresge's and Woolworth's, but there was also a plethora of locally owned and operated shops selling shoes, men's suits, women's fashion, groceries, hardware goods and everything in between.

You wanted something, you came downtown.

A diminishing number of people can remember those glory years; even fewer can attest to being active players at the time.

Thus, the significance of Don Shaw's passing earlier this month.

No locally owned and operated shop shone brighter or attracted a wider mix of customers during downtown's heyday than the Potter and Shaw drugstore on St. Paul Street.

The affable, outgoing Shaw would later parlay the success of the downtown operation into other retail ventures. He was among the first set of shop owners in the Pen Centre, opened a photo store, started discount-style Crown Pharmacies and was part of a group of local investors that captivated St. Catharines in the 1970s with the development of a spectacular commercial/retail complex called Corbloc.

It's a record of accomplishments and initiatives that was there for all to see over a period of decades.

Please see full story by D. Herod in The St. Catharines Standard at:

It was an exciting concept.

A retail outlet and studio to offer handmade hats and accessories and make wholesale items for other stores.

Started in 2006 by Tori Kosinec, Mad Cap Hats and Accessories at 38 James St. was a welcome and original addition to downtown St. Catharines.

Sagging retail sales ultimately dragged down the business, said Kosinec, who has decided to close Mad Caps.

 

"My heart is broken in half. It's so hard to throw in the towel," said the 51-year-old, who also lives downtown.

"I really tried everything I could to keep it going.

"I put my life savings into this, but retail sales kept going down."

Kosinec will continue operating her hat wholesale division at the location until it is rented, or until her lease expires in a few months. The retail store closes at the end of May.

Kosinec's hat-making journey began 23 years ago when she bought a second-hand knitting machine to make sweaters for her young son, Sean.

She made a hat for her then husband and business exploded.

Kosinec and her team have sewn hats and other items for stores and craft shows. For a time, she owned a store in Burlington.

In her early 40s, she returned to school to become a certified milliner — someone who makes and sells hats.

Kosinec then fell in love with an empty James Street location, which once housed the CD store Station To Station.

"You know, I put my heart and soul into my constant crusade there," she said. "I also wanted to help improve downtown, but others much smarter and mightier before me have fallen."

A breast cancer survivor, she is also known for charitable work in supplying hats to women going through chemotherapy.

Kosinec's eye-catching efforts have borne fruit on one successful front. By the summer, she'll be selling hats to 100 boutiques across Canada.

"Our wholesale is growing by leaps and bounds, but the retail has been dragging the company down," she said.

"It's very frustrating, but it's up to me to make my (retail) business work," Kosinec said, adding efforts need to be redoubled to help retailers and offices make a better go of it in the core.

"This is discouraging, because this city is so amazing."

Kosinec's hats will continue to be sold at festivals and shows and Kosinec may open another store in Niagara.

Tisha Polocko, general manager of the St. Catharines Downtown Association, said Mad Cap will be missed.

"Most definitely, our downtown retailers have had a rough go of it the last little while," Polocko said. "We're all trying to do our little bit to try and improve things and I think it will over time.

"Mad Hat is such a wonderful location. I think someone will definitely fill it soon."

Drivers can look forward to travelling in both directions along the entire length of downtown's main route by the summer, if city plans move ahead on schedule.

The conversion of the last little section of St. Paul Street to two-way traffic is planned for mid to late June.

A small section of King Street, between Court Street and Carlisle Street, should also be completed at that time.

"It will be a one-shot deal," said city transportation manager Kris Jacobson. "The same day we open up one, we'll open up the other."

The city had hoped to convert the last piece of St. Paul Street, from Geneva to Court streets, last fall, allowing drivers to travel west, but it didn't pan out. The plan was to finish St. Paul Street at the same time as King Street, but that project went longer than anticipated.

Jacobson said the top asphalt on King Street still has to be put down this spring.

The section of King between Church and Court streets will remain one-way because of issues tied in with the St. Paul- Queenston-Niagara-Geneva intersection. Jacobson said traffic can't go along King and Church to Geneva Street until alternatives are found for the intersection, which the city is looking at with the Region. "Until that's resolved, I can't carry it further."

Once two-way is finished on St. Paul Street, southbound drivers on Geneva Street will be able to turn right onto St. Paul and continue down the entire artery. Northbound drivers won't be allowed to turn left because of the intersection's layout.

"If you were to turn left northbound, the turn you'd have to make is beyond 90 degrees," Jacobson said. "It would be a very awkward left turn to make."

Plus, the left northbound lane of Geneva is the only lane for through traffic, so making lefts would stop all traffic, he said.

Please see full story in The St. Catharines Standard at:

http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2493346

Brendan McMahon won't be hoisting a beer to celebrate St. Patrick's Day Wednesday.

Not even a pint of Guinness, the unofficial national drink of his native Ireland.

"For me, it would be a glass of wine, or a nice single-malt whiskey," said McMahon, who runs Cask 22 European Wine Bar and Street Cafe on St. Paul Street.

McMahon laughed at the suggestion his choice might be considered sacrilegious among St. Patrick's Day faithful.

"Well, it might not be typical.... I drank my share of Guinness in my youth, but somewhere along the way I converted to wine. I think it comes with age, a certain level of maturity."

Actually, the St. Catharines oenophile finds plenty to chuckle at in the frenzied North American celebration of the Irish holiday.

Green beer, for example.

"You won't find that in Ireland," he said, grinning. "Nobody dressed in green or anything like they do here. Really, when I was living there it was just a day off to go to the pub. There was never much of a hullabaloo."

With that in mind, McMahon is offering a less-frenzied St. Paddy's Day alternative for folks who would like to raise a glass that isn't filled with beer, black or green.

McMahon, who doesn't normally sell Guinness, is making an exception Wednesday in an effort to coax beer drinkers into the world of wine.

The cafe will be slinging Black Velvets, a mix of sparkling wine and Ireland's black gold.

Please see full story in The St. Catharines Standard :

Remember the downtown performing arts thingy?

Didn't think so.

Time, therefore, to rustle up some news about The Project That Would Save St. Catharines, lest it completely disappear from the community consciousness.

The land assembly for the arts palace/school is nearing an end.

St. Catharines city council voted in camera last week to make a final offer to the one remaining holdout on St. Paul Street.

If it's rejected ... well, council's not saying.

But it doesn't take a genius to figure out the next step will likely be notice to expropriate the property at 240-42 St. Paul St., where currently sits a used book store and a used record shop.

So, don't delay. Get that Jethro Tull Thick As A Brick album now.

The decision to launch expropriation proceedings is a sensitive one for municipalities. It sort of conjures up the image of Big Brother making a land grab.

As such, Mayor Brian McMullan was at pains to point out the city has "made every effort to negotiate in good faith to try to simply purchase the property."

It took into consideration the provincially assessed value of the property and also had it independently appraised, said McMullan, but after months of negotiating, the city and the property owner -- a company called Building From Scratch -- remain "pretty far apart."

Please see full story in The St. Catharines Standard by D. Herod

Lifelong city booster Don Shaw, whose controversial Corbloc dream reshaped the downtown, has died after a brief illness.

The 92-year-old, the last family owner of local pharmacy chain Potter and Shaw, was an "icon for the city," said friend George Darte.

"He loved his city and he was a visionary," said the funeral home director, whose father also knew Shaw well. "He was involved in many important projects ... in some cases he was well beyond his time, as many visionaries are."

The pharmacy owner was the driving force behind Corbloc, a nine-storey office tower and retail blockbuster development pitched as a miniature version of Toronto's Eaton Centre to revitalize a sagging downtown. Shaw's ownership group ran out of money and lost control of the massive commercial development a year later.

In hindsight, Shaw later said the "grandiose" building was "prematurely conceived," but more recently the development at 80 King St. has become a mini-financial hub, with RBC Royal Bank moving in two years ago.

"He was a city booster, always very fond of and very proud of St. Catharines," said daughter Marilyn Walker. "He always tried to make it a better place ... Even if everything he tried didn't work out, he was successful for a period of time."

Please see full story in The St. Catharines Standard at:

http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2482915

Tyler Heath figured he had the recipe for a truly standout chili, even among a crowd of 19 fiery competitors.

The executive chef for Taps Brewing Company in Niagara Falls showed up at the annual Chili Cook Off at Market Square with Holy Smoke, a beef and pork concoction featuring smoked veggies.

Oh, and one more important ingredient.

"There's a good, good, good bit of Red Cream Ale in there," said a laughing Heath, who acknowledged plenty of chili-tasters were noting the taste.

"I find that once it's reduced, the ale really gives it a nice, meaty flavour."

Heath wasn't the only cook relying on the drawing power of an eye-raising ingredient.

The Rootin' Tootin' Chili Queens loaded their offering with ground beef, pork, veal, sausage bits and everyone's favourite meaty Canadian icon, moose.

"It has a really interesting flavour, which changes it quite a bit from the other (entries)," said would-be chili queen Megan Franklin, who is also competing to be Miss Universe Canada next spring.

Franklin came close to a win Friday, earning second place in the judge's choice award behind Niagara Falls' Great Wolf Lodge.

Doris Maxwell's "secret ingredient" helped CAW Local 199 win the people's choice award, even if it wasn't a very well-kept secret.

"The secret is local food made by Local 199," said a laughing Maxwell, pointing proudly to a banner listing all the ingredients grown in Niagara.

The mix of hometown peppers, beer, apples and maple syrup contributed to a unique taste that most chili tasters seemed to love.

A few contestants offered added value over and above the actual chili.

Taps' chili shared a table with its Red Cream Ale, where fire-breathing tasters tended to congregate.

The Royal Flush team of Royal LePage realtors offered free hugs along with their food. "We call it lunch with love," chief hugger Elizabeth Barr said. "Our chili is great, too."

Debate rages ...

The chiliest city debate remains unresolved.

The results for the St. Catharines Chili Cook Off showed Niagara Falls competitor Great Wolf Lodge winning the judges' choice award, but Garden City-based CAW Local 199 nabbed the people's choice trophy.

St. Catharines Mayor Brian McMullan spiced up the fourth annual event by daring the Honeymoon Capital to bring its best chili challengers to Market Square Friday.

Niagara Falls Mayor Ted Salci rose to the challenge, arriving with his city's latest winners, Great Wolf Lodge and Edgewaters Tap and Grill.

Salci won mayoral bragging rights at the judging table, however, with both McMullan and Deputy Mayor Peter Secord out of town during the chili chow-down.

The charity event raised more than $4,500 for Community Care, said Elizabeth Fritshaw of the downtown association. That's almost a $1,000 improvement over last year.

Please see video clip and full story in The St. Catharines Standard at:

http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2457713

Samuel Potapczyk was getting a serious rise out of being hurled and tossed with abandon on the bouncers at Market Square.

Samuel, 2, was in his element Monday at the Fun-for-Food Family Day event in downtown St. Catharines.

His contented look afterward — munching deep into a ball of cotton candy — said it all.

"He loved being in there," said his St. Catharines grandfather Billy Gervais.

"You should have seen him in action, he was jumping around and running all over the place."

Nearby, Nigel Radick was raving about some near-impossible rabbit and card tricks performed by Welland magician Steven Huess.

"He made three bunnies into one big bunny," said Nigel, 6, his eyes wide with amazement. "It's amazing.'

Patrons were also asked to donate food and money to Community Care of St. Catharines Thorold in a free gathering that included clowns, magicians, crafts, music and a ballcap-wearing Santa.

Jennifer Argentino, senior sales representative for event host Niagara Inflatables and Games, said 5,000 pounds of food and $500 was collected last year. Organizers said they collected around 6,000 pounds of food, with six schools pitching in to donate non-perishable food collected in advance. Prince Philip School of St. Catharines alone brought in 1,200 pounds.

Please see full story by D. Fraser in The St. Catharines Standard at:

The policy planners for the City of St. Catharines are set to roll out the city's new Official Plan — their blueprint for making the city the kind of place people are proud of, a place that people want to call home.

After three years of consultation, research and writing — and accusations from their wives that they've spent so much time together they could be having an affair — Tapp and Bellows will be hosting a series of open houses and public meetings starting this week.

It's the public's first chance to look at the document that will guide the city into the future.

And people shouldn't be fooled into thinking it won't affect them, Bellows said.

Everyone should be checking out the plan online, getting a copy from city hall or looking it up at the library, he said, and finding out what's in store for their neighbourhood.

Tapp said what's different about this Official Plan from the one that's been in place since the 1980s is its emphasis on sustainability.

***

Read it

Copies of the draft Garden City Plan are available in the planning department at City Hall, at the St. Catharines Public Library, and online at www.stcatharines.ca. Click on Quick Links and scroll down to Official Plan.

Understand it

The new Garden City Plan is based on sustainability. According to the plan, a sustainable community is one that:

• respects and embraces its heritage to create a sense of identity and pride

• provides choices and opportunities for employment, housing, transportation, social and recreational amenities

• protects and enhances its natural areas and processes

• makes efficient use of its infrastructure by encouraging a compact, mixed-use, walkable and connected community

• has a vibrant downtown and welcoming, attractive public places

• conserves its landscapes, open space and agricultural areas

• provides access and opportunity to the decision-making process

Learn more about it and provide your input

St. Catharines policy planners Bruce Bellows and Rick Tapp are set to roll out their draft of the city's new Official Plan at a series of open houses and public meetings, starting next week.

The two men, who were famously quoted two years ago as saying St. Catharines is broken, are ready to unveil their plans for how to fix it and to seek public input on their ideas.

Events are scheduled for:

• Feb. 10, Open House, 2 to 4 p.m. and 7 to 9 p.m. City Hall Committee Room 1, 50 Church St.

• Feb. 16, Presentation and public meeting, 7 to 9 p.m., City Hall Council Chambers, 50 Church St.

• Feb. 17, Presentation and public meeting, 7 to 9 p.m. Grantham Lions Club, 732 Niagara St.

• Feb. 23, Presentation and public meeting, 7 to 9 p.m., Westdale School, 130 Rykert St.

• Feb. 24, Presentation and public meeting, 7 to 9 p.m., Woodland School, 1511 Seventh St.

• Feb. 25, Presentation and public meeting, 7 to 9 p.m., Briardale School, 1-A Caroline St.

• Mar. 2, Presentation and public meeting, 7 to 9 p.m., Merritton Community Centre, 7 Park St.

• Mar. 4, Presentation and public meeting, 7 to 9 p.m., Sheridan Park School, 114 Linwell Rd.

Please see full story in The St. Catharines Standard at:

http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2439108

The mayor spoke of local successes in building emerging technologies like nGen, the Niagara Interactive Media Generator, and the city's Enterprise Centre.

Renewed hope in the downtown was another theme he stressed.

A convergence of projects like a promised Brock arts school and centre for performing arts, a replaced Carlisle Street parking garage and two-way traffic conversion bear real promise.

The expansion of GO Transit and efforts to establish a regional transportation network are more upbeat signs, McMullan said.

"Despite the recent challenges surrounding this (regional transit) issue, I remain committed to it and believe it will happen," he said.

Dominating the good news is a massive amount of local investment of almost $1 billion from 2009 to 2010, he said. That is helping to create a "new optimism and excitement among our citizens."

McMullan defended the spending of taxpayer money on infrastructure projects. The spending isn't frivolous, he maintained.

"These are projects that will make St. Catharines a place where people want to live, work and play."

Please see full story in The St. Catharines Standard at:

The two cities have an enduring rivalry.

One is a tourism hot spot that considers itself world class.

The other is a regional administrative hub the Honeymoon Capital loves to hate.

Now, Niagara Falls and St. Catharines are stirring up a chili showdown to prove who really has the beef.

On Feb. 19, the winners of the Niagara Falls mayor and council chili cook-off will meet contestants in St. Catharines' downtown chili cook-off at Market Square.

The match-up is a challenge from St. Catharines city council, and Mayor Brian McMullan has no doubt who will prevail.

St. Catharines "has the ability to heat things up when it needs to," McMullan said.

We also have home-field advantage, McMullan pointed out. And as a judge, the mayor said he's tasted some extraordinary, lip-smacking selections.

Have no fear Niagara Falls, assured the mayor, this contest is good natured: "We won't be throwing anything, that's for sure.

"Niagara Falls is a worthy opponent."

Just to be fair, Niagara Falls Mayor Ted Salci will also sit on the cook-off's judging panel, which includes local personalities (including The Standard's Debi Wiebe, Doug Herod and Judy Bullis).

Please see full story by D. Fraser in The St. Catharines Standard:

The BUCSSA's growing needs have pushed them off-campus into their new office in the heart of downtown St. Catharines.
The Brock University Chinese Students and Scholars Association (BUCSSA) is one of Brock's largest clubs ratified under the Brock University Student Union (BUSU) and represents the Chinese students and scholars at Brock for either academic inquiries or social gatherings.
"So, basically, if you are a Chinese student or scholar at Brock or if you are interested in Chinese culture no matter which culture you are coming from, we are the people you will need," said Li Ye, a second-year Visual Arts major and Promotion Director of BUCSSA.
BUCSSA holds many events, offers a membership card and has lauched a Web site which all help introduce Chinese culture to the Niagara area and Brock, as well as connecting Chinese students to the community.
"In order to allow the members of [BUCSSA] get involved with the Canadian Society, in order to really help the Brock Chinese students, our association is offering a membership discount card," said Ye. "This card is cohesive to the hard work of all the executives in the association. Any student who holds the membership card can get a discount in over 10 stores in the Niagara Region."
On Nov. 21, BUCSSA officially christened their new office location in the pulsing epitaph of downtown St. Paul Street.

See full story in The Brock Press at:

When Leo Groarke decided to tell the story of the evolution of Laurier Brantford and its role in the restoration of a city's crumbling downtown, he wanted to tell the whole story.

The school is now vital to the core with 17 buildings and 2,500 full-time students. But its early years, marked by skepticism, controversy and conflict, are easy to forget.

***

Groarke is hoping his book will have some influence on other cities and universities and how they approach the revitalization of downtowns.

"I think Brantford is such a positive example for other communities. It's a model of urban renewal that Brantford and Laurier need to be proud of."

Please see full story in The Brantford Expositor at:

There is a lot of concern among taxpayers about the amount of money the City of St. Catharines has spent, is spending or is about to spend on several big-ticket items.

A new pool and library; a new hospital; a performing arts centre; an artificial turf field at a relatively new four-pad arena; a new parking garage; two-way traffic conversion; talk of the possibility of a new arena for the Niagara IceDogs.

Toss in a few major roads projects, a convention centre in Niagara Falls and major projects at Brock University and NIagara College, and four levels of government are teaming up to throw more than $1 billion towards the region over the next couple of years.

No question, it is a lot of dough, and taxpayers are getting hit from all angles as most everybody knows, there are four levels of government, but only one taxpayer.

And the concerns are justified. The tax rate in St. Catharines-- in Niagara, for that matter-- is high.

But consider this: the taxes in this part of the world climbed to their current levels before any of these projects were on the books, and what do we have to show for it?

A decaying downtown, a collapsed manufacturing sector, high unemployment, a sluggish economy. About the only sector faring well is a healthy and robust public sector.

But the reality is unless St. Catharines (and Niagara) invests in itself, the decline will continue.

The projects on the books are big, and they are all costly.

But they will also make St. Catharines (and Niagara) a better place in which to live.

Believe it or not, prospective employers do look at the amenities a community has to offer their employees when deciding where to locate new businesses.

And believe it or not, things like a performing arts centre and a new hospital generate economic activity and create jobs.

This is money well spent, with a tangible outcome that will improve our community.

But with that said, taxpayers do need some relief.

An exercise like a true, and public, core services review would enable councillors to identify areas of savings to offset these investments and ease the impact on the tax base. And by the number of spending scandals we've seen provincially and federally in recent years, there is a lot that can be done in Ottawa and Queen's Park to pare back spending in other areas.

Please see full story in The St. Catharines Standard by K. Reid at:

O'Connell is already seeing the fabric of a strong recovery.

The owner of Honey's clothing store on St. Paul Street sees the end of downtown St. Catharines road construction and two-way conversion as leading the way.

"I think we've turned a corner for sure. The last few months have been very good," O'Connell said. "We're looking for a little more of that."

News that the Conference Board of Canada is predicting five years of growth for Niagara's economy suits O'Connell just fine.

"This report is definitely very positive," he said. "I think we're coming into a better mood and people are opening their wallets again."

The Conference Board says construction, as well as wholesale and retail trade, will help boost the region's gross domestic product -- the value of goods and services produced -- by 2.4% this year.

This increase will come after three tepid years for the economy, including a GDP decline of 3.4% in 2009.

Even more impressive is the board's forecast for an average annual GDP growth of 3.1% from 2011 to 2014.

That would put Niagara -- not including Grimsby and West Lincoln-- in 12th spot of 27 large cities and regions in Canada.

This year's forecast places Niagara in 21st place.

Please see full story in The St. Catharines Standard at:

It's a space steeped in history, groomed to join a thriving grass-roots arts scene in downtown St. Catharines.

Inside onefortyfive, the former Grantham Township Hall, an art gallery leads into a room with an urban photo montage.

Walls of earthy pastels frame a high-definition movie house, audio equipment and sound board.

Round tables and comfortable chairs fill the centre of the room.

It's the latest in a surge of new arts groups and initiatives that are transforming the core.

Community leaders say it's a taste of what will be an arts cornucopia when the new Niagara Centre for the Arts and Brock University's fine and performing arts centre opens, likely in 2013.

"With onefortyfive, we wanted to be experimental and imaginative," said Troy Watson, the onefortyfive director and a former pastor at Bethany Mennonite Church in Virgil.

"We also wanted to think outside the box and be relevant."

Watson is part of a group of families that have formed an arts-themed Christian spiritual group called the Quest Christian Community.

After meeting with civic and arts leaders, "we started sensing that there's something really happening downtown," he said.

They chose the King Street building for its stateliness and open space and renovated the rented digs over the past year.

Onefourtyfive will start with monthly movie screenings and concerts and a public gallery on Tuesdays.

Watson has a vision that other arts groups in the core increasingly share.

Their mission: to collaborate in the making and hosting of compelling music, art, film, theatre and dance.

"And that's the main thing, we want to work together," Watson said.

"This will help reinforce what we and many others are all about: partnerships, dialogue and sharing resources."

A half block down King Street, another cultural makeover has happened at the Sullivan Mahoney Courthouse Theatre.

Carousel Players has spearheaded an extensive renovation inside the old courthouse, now regained by the City of St. Catharines after a lease expired.

Arts groups and collectives from the Niagara Symphony to the Niagara Dance Company call the space home.

"We're seeing a renaissance happening downtown," said Jane Gardner, general manager of Carousel, a popular troupe that focuses on performances for schools and young people.

She praises the nearby Grantham building project as an example of arts entrepreneurship that is enriching the scene in the core and rejuvenating old buildings.

This kind of creative energy has already given Carousel a huge leg up.

Since it moved into the old courthouse on King Street, bookings at its theatre and rehearsal hall have increased to 47 weeks a year.

"That's a big leap from when we moved in and just occupied two tiny offices in 2001," Gardner said.

"With the support of the city and partners like the Ontario Trillium Foundation, we've been able to transform the second floor of the building into an arts centre that's being actively used by seven arts-related companies," she said.

The city has agreed to let Carousel use the second-floor space until the Niagara Centre for the Arts and Brock University's Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts is built.

That will allow the other groups to stay at the courthouse for the time being.

An example of the success of this theatre cluster is the forthcoming performance of Crack, written by playwright Sky Gilbert and performed by the local Essential Collective Theatre.

And it's not just the smaller groups that are thriving, Gardner said.

The Niagara Artists' Centre on St. Paul Street has revamped formerly aging digs into a vibrant arts hub.

"We've seen great things take place in communities when things like this happen," she said.

"It also draws more people to come downtown and live there, and stay beyond 5 p.m."

When arts activities continue into the evening, it makes the core a safer place, she added.

NAC, an established artists' collective, has recently worked on some well-received projects, including The Wine King of Dominion City parade float and installation by Guelph graphic artist Seth.

NAC director Stephen Remus, himself an experimental artist, is especially thrilled by the addition of onefortyfive's high-definition screen in a region that has too few cinema venues.

"So much of what's being expressed around the world is being done in film now," Remus said.

"There are limited resources, so we all want to do things together and there's a great spirit of collaboration happening.

"There is definitely a collection of energies right here."

Rebecca Cann, the City of St. Catharines' cultural programming supervisor, noted many of these successful downtown groups are partly funded through the city's cultural investment program.

"From where I'm sitting, that has been an important stimulus to that arts community," Cann said.

"I'd also place significant emphasis on the arts centre and its partners' leadership on it.

"It's that kind of profound commitment to the future of arts in St. Catharines that energizes and inspires the grassroots," she added. "It gives people optimism and sets their eyes to the future."

Artist Tobey Anderson, who runs the CRAM artists' collective gallery and studio downtown, said that when he came to the area in 1990, "there wasn't the kind of growth you're seeing right now."

CRAM, which launched in 2006 and is based on James Street, now has more than 24 artists. "Everybody bought into it, it's crazy," said the self-described CRAM dictator with a laugh.

He calls the city's cultural policy a "tremendous success."

"The whole climate is different; there's more opportunity (all around for cultural support)," Anderson said.

"While it's not the best time to sell artwork, there are people stepping out there and it really is a going concern in Niagara."

Patti Broughton, executive director of the St. Catharines and Area Arts Council, described an arts scene that is flourishing downtown.

"There's a real diversity of artists and arts organizations downtown," she said.

That phenomenon includes more multi-arts events like October's James Street Night of Art and In the Soil festival in April.

"The creative future of St. Catharines is building," Broughton said.

"We look forward to having Brock University students in the (forthcoming arts school) join the arts community downtown, and to a home for artists and audiences in the new arts centre."

Remus would like to see this momentum continue.

"People should realize that if they're looking for a cultural experience, they can find it in St. Catharines," he said. "They can find it in NAC, Carousel, Suitcase in Point's cabarets -you shouldn't look first to Toronto or Buffalo.

"And there's no question these artists now really need the support of our community."

Story posted by D. Fraser in The St. Catharines Standard at:

A roadblock in plans to revitalize the downtown core with a new arts school and performing arts centre won't put the brakes on plans to revamp a landmark hotel on St. Paul Street, says its new owner.

A $4-million renovation of the Leonard Hotel will forge ahead, said Nick Atalick, who bought the property last fall.

"It doesn't affect us at all," he said Monday. "We weren't looking for the finished school and theatres until 2012-2013 anyway."

Atalick bought the 80-year-old building in large part because of the potential to capitalize on spinoff benefits of a plan by Brock University and the city to partner on a new performing arts centre and a school of fine and performing arts nearby.

Brock has put its end of the project on hold as it awaits approval from the province of $21.6 million toward construction costs, which has also effectively stalled the city's part of the project.

Atalick, president of the Atalick Group, said a minor setback in the timing of the arts project won't hurt his company's plans.

"It doesn't really matter to us if it's six months or so. Our program is still going ahead."

Commercial realtor David Cooperman said it's too early to tell whether the hold-up may cause other prospective developers to hold off on plans to buy downtown properties.

"Does this put a caution sign up?" he asked.

"They're going to be a little more cautious, but they were cautious to begin with."

Walter Sendzik, executive director of the St. CatharinesThorold Chamber of Commerce, called the funding confusion "a blip" that the city and university will overcome. 

"I think there is justification to be concerned ... the city can't go forward on this without Brock," he said. "But with any project of this magnitude there are bound to be hurdles and stops and starts. I think the province senses the importance of this project to the community and I think that will spur them on."

A performing arts centre delay won't influence a proposal to bring the wine route to downtown St. Catharines, said A.J. McLaughlin, head of the tourism committee for the Wine Council of Ontario. McLaughlin said council members will likely vote in March on a proposal to extend the popular wine tourism trail through the Garden City core.

Council members consider the arts centre "a key component of the overall revitalization package," McLaughlin said, but as far as the wine route decision is concerned, "it's not a deal-breaker today."

He noted the proposed arts centre and school isn't expected to be opened until 2013, with or without a delay.

"We'll be making a decision on the wine route well before that," he said, adding downtown signage and a rickety Burgoyne Bridge are larger concerns for members of the trade association for Ontario's wineries.

Full story by P.Downs and M. Van Dongen in The St. Catharines Standard at: 

http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2257000

The major source of funding for the project to conjoin Brock’s school of fine and performing arts with the Niagara Centre for the Arts has yet to come through, and that is leaving some of the project’s proponents anxious.
Brock University is still awaiting an answer from the Province on whether its request for $26.1 million will be approved.
The money represents more than half of the cost for Brock to move its school downtown to the site of the former Canada Hair Cloth building. The university intends to raise the remaining more than $20 million through fundraising.
The funding request was made back in September 2008, when the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities asked post-secondary institutions for a priority list for capital projects over the next 10 years. When Brock submitted its list, the downtown arts project was right at the top.
But then the federal government announced the Knowledge Infrastructure Program (KIP) in the 2009 budget, which required provincial matching dollars. In response, the Province announced it would match the federal dollars.
This put Brock in a tough position as it already had a $33.5-million commitment from the Province (announced in February 2008) for the $109-million Niagara Health and Bioscience Research Complex. If it submitted the school of fine and performing arts project, it wouldn’t get federal dollars for the bioscience centre.
Instead, it submitted the bioscience centre project, which was approved, along with 27 other projects at post-secondary institutions across Ontario, and the $1.1-billion federal-provincial fund was announced at Brock in May 2009.
This means there is no formal application for funding for the school of fine and performing arts apart from being at the top of its capital priority list.
So while the city has already lined up its funding for the arts centre, including the $36 million from the federal and provincial governments announced in May, the two project components are so intertwined that the lack of funding for one puts the whole enterprise on hold.
“All of the project is in jeopardy,” Rosemary Hale, dean of Brock’s faculty of humanities, said. “The projects are so intertwined that neither can move forward without the funding.”
She explained the deadlines tied to the other sources of funding mean they need an answer as soon as possible.
“The danger point is right now,” she said.
She added the $15-million donation made by Marilyn I. Walker, whose name now graces the school of fine and performing arts, was never intended to be fully allocated towards the project’s capital costs.
“That’s been a major misconception,” she said.
At the time, the donation was heralded as transformational, with Mayor Brian McMullan telling This Week it could be the catalyst to make the project a reality.
However, Hale explained, the funds are meant for other costs associated with creating the school and making it a premiere institution, such as hiring chairs.
“Right now, the project is in stop mode until the funding comes through,” she said.
She said the university had hoped there would have been a dual announcement made in May when the city received its funding. There wasn’t, and the university has been waiting ever since.
On Wednesday, Jan. 6, when the project’s joint executive committee, chaired by Lincoln Fabric’s David Howes, met for the last time, it was agreed around the table the entire project is at a standstill until the university receives the funding commitment.
However, ministry spokesperson Patrick O’Gorman said while the minister is aware the project is a priority for Brock, there is no announcement forthcoming.
He explained not all the projects listed in the capital priority list received funding through the Knowledge Infrastructure Program, and those that didn’t will be considered later.
“We’re looking at providing funding for these projects over the longer term,” he said.
From the beginning, the project has been conceived as a partnership.
The feasibility study the city and Brock commissioned and was released in late 2008 stated the very success of the project is the nature of the partnership. Not only will having the two located beside each other create cost efficiencies, it also adds stability to it and will help build a critical mass of both arts users and audience traffic.
“I believe it’s a much stronger project with the partnership we’ve struck with Brock University,” McMullan said to This Week.
He said he’s yet to hear any reason to cause him to believe the funding is not going to come through.
He said, though, the project is at a stage when the partners need an answer to move forward. Much of the advance planning has been done, he said, and in order for the project to move forward in a concrete way, such as through the tendering phase, the funding must be secured.
“We’re at the stage as we look to take the next steps, it’s prudent to make sure all the funding is in place,” he said.
To that end, McMullan said he wrote a letter to recently appointed MPP Gerry Phillips, minister of energy and infrastructure, to impress upon him the project’s importance. The letter was copied to both St. Catharines MPP Jim Bradley and Premier Dalton McGuinty.
McMullan said that he wrote to that ministry because it has been involved with the project from the beginning. He explained the funding the city received for its portion of the project came from Infrastructure Ontario, and while Brock must work through the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities, he was told all major capital dollars ultimately come from the former.
“It sounds like a lot of things have to go by Infrastructure Ontario — that’s what I’m told,” he said, adding Bradley is also kept apprised on such communications, as he would know which ministry needs to be involved.
“To cover our bases, we make sure Bradley is copied,” he said.

 Story by M. Zettle at Niagara This Week at:  http://www.niagarathisweek.com/news/article/263225--funding-for-brock-arts-school-uncertain

The status of Brock University's application for provincial dollars to help build a downtown arts school is clearer.

The province acknowledged Monday it's had the formal proposal for months.

But the end result remains the same -- the university says the project remains on hold until it can get a firm commitment from Queen's Park for $26.1 million.

"We understand that the government is having a difficult financial year. I imagine had it not been for the recession all of this probably would have happened earlier," Brock president Jack Lightstone said Monday. "We've been patient ... but we reach a point where things get stalled if we can't get the commitment."

The Ontario Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities cleared up confusion Monday regarding the school's funding proposal.

Last Friday, a spokesman said the ministry didn't have a "specific request" on its table from the university for the project, which is being eyed as a key piece needed for the revitalization of the downtown core.

The university maintained its proposal had been in the ministry's hands in various forms for more than a year.

Ministry spokesman Patrick O'Gorman said Monday he had been referring to a funding envelope the province created for educational facilities -- called the Knowledge Infrastructure Program -- when he said Brock hadn't submitted a proposal for the arts school.

Brock received approximately $33.5 million through the program towards construction of a new health and bioscience research centre.

"We are aware of the funding request for the arts program. It will be considered for future funding announcements," O'Gorman said Monday.

When those announcements take place is unclear.

"At this point there are no funding announcements coming, but that could change if the government provides us more funding," O'Gorman said.

More money isn't expected to flow until the government sets its budget in the spring for the next fiscal year.

"That's the most likely next time we'll get additional funding.... If there's more funding available, it may get allocated to it. But right now we don't have anything upcoming," O'Gorman said.

St. Catharines MPP Jim Bradley said the ministry is aware the downtown arts school is Brock's highest capital funding priority.

"As the province at this time of year goes through its budgetary process, it determines what programs might be available for funding next year and the years beyond that," he said.

Brock plans to revamp the former Canada Hair Cloth building behind St. Paul Street to house its school of fine and performing arts.

The total cost of the project, including nearly $4.9 million in renovations needed at the main campus after the arts school moves, is estimated at roughly $47.8 million.

The new school will be built as an integrated component of the city's $54-million plan to create a downtown performing arts centre.

The city received word last May that Ottawa and Queen's Park would each kick in $18 million towards the project, leaving it with an equal share of the cost.

Brock officials have been waiting ever since for their funding request from the province to fall in place for the joint project.

Without the money, the university's project is on hold, which also puts the city's side of the work in temporary limbo, Lightstone said.

"When we start issuing contracts for serious amounts of money, these are contracts that both partners will be going forward on," he said.

"We're in this together with the city. We're partners with the city. Partners don't cut and run from each other."

St. Catharines Mayor Brian McMullan echoed Lightstone's commitment to the partnership, and said the delay does not worry him.

"We have confidence in our partner, Brock University, that they are working diligently to pursue the necessary funding to complete the Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine Arts," McMullan said in an interview after Monday night's council meeting.

Several Brock officials attended the meeting, including Lightstone, Hale and Marilyn Walker, but left after the arts centre issue was not raised during McMullan's opening comments.

McMullan said afterwards that delays are not unexpected "in a project of this magnitude." "If our partner says, 'We need a bit more time,' that's a reasonable request," he said. "There is no indication the province is not supportive of this project."

Brock dean of humanities Rosemary Hale said waiting for funding approval to the province until after the budget would cause a serious setback in the project's timing.

"It's like being frozen in midair. It's downright awful. It's heart-stopping for me," she said.

But Hale said she's still hopeful Brock and the city will be able to convince provincial cabinet to open its wallet before budget time.

"Having to have a stop put on it is extremely painful, but maybe what it does is enable both the major partners here ... to really come together shoulder to shoulder and demonstrate to the province that we are together mighty and strong," she said.

Please see story by P.Downs in The St. Catharines Standard at:

Both sides say they're doing the same thing -- waiting.

Brock University says it's waiting for grant approval from the provincial government for $26.1 million towards construction of a new $42.9-million arts school in downtown St. Catharines.

The Ontario Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities says it's still waiting for a formal proposal from the university for the project.

And while the bureaucratic waiting game plays out, Brock has put the project on hold indefinitely.

As a result, the city's plan to create a downtown performing arts centre -- which is to be built as an integrated component of Brock's project and already has provincial and federal funding support -- is also effectively stuck in temporary limbo.

"We've reached the point now where we cannot progress further without commitment from the provincial government for the $26.1 million we have requested," Brock president Jack Lightstone said Friday.

"Right now the project is halted and it cannot be started until that commitment is made."

But a ministry spokesman said the government can't yet consider the funding request because the university hasn't submitted a formal proposal for the project.

"That was identified as one of their capital funding priorities through our long-term planning process, but we don't have a specific request in right now and we don't have any funding announcements coming up in the immediate future for that," Patrick O'Gorman told The Standard.

Lightstone said the ministry asked universities in 2008 to submit proposals for five capital projects each to be considered for funding available through a 10-year infrastructure renewal program.

Brock singled out its plan to relocate its current school of fine and performing arts from its Glenridge Avenue campus to the former Canada Hair Cloth building behind St. Paul Street as its top priority, he said. 

Lightstone said the university followed up last year by submitting a formal "dossier" providing more detail on the proposal to both the province and the federal government when the City of St. Catharines put in its proposal for joint funding from the two levels of government to build a $54-million performing arts centre adjacent to Brock's downtown arts school.

The city received word last May that Ottawa and Queen's Park would each kick in $18 million towards its project, leaving it with an equal share of the construction tab.

Brock has been waiting ever since for the other piece of the joint-project puzzle to fall in place -more funding from the province to help pay for the transformation of the historic Canada Hair Cloth building, which the city expropriated last year.

"Everyone had the full dossier," Lightstone said. "Everyone knew that this was one integrated project and the viability of the operation really hung on the integrated nature of the project."

Lightstone was shocked by the ministry spokesman's take on the status of Brock's proposal.

"That's pretty odd.... I think he's misunderstood," he said.

University administrators are in contact with ministry staff on a daily basis to discuss the project, he said.

"Over the past number of months they've asked us for supplementary information. Why would they be asking us for supplementary information if we hadn't submitted a proposal?" he said.

Regardless of the circumstances of the apparent misunderstanding, the situation remains the same -without a funding infusion, Brock's project is stalled.

A joint steering committee of city and Brock officials was scheduled to hire a project manager last month, but couldn't go ahead as planned because of the funding questions.

"We're at a point now where to make further progress we need to start issuing contracts which involve serious money in order to proceed," Lightstone said. "Of course, the university's board will never authorize major expenditures until at least it has the commitment from the government for where the rest of the money is coming from."

St. Catharines Mayor Brian McMullan said the city may be forced to wait on its portion of the project while Brock tries to sort out its funding status.

"If they say we need a month or two to get everything in place, I think it would be prudent to give Brock that time," he said.

McMullan said he's confident the province believes in the merits of the overall initiative.

"It's a strong project. It's good for the university and it's good for the city, particularly for our efforts to revive downtown."

O'Gorman said he's not aware of any major funding announcements on the horizon before the government sets its next budget in the spring.

The longer it takes for a funding decision, the more difficult it will be for the city to meet construction deadlines set when the province and the federal government approved grants for the performing arts centre, Lightstone said.

"It's not us who started the timer going," he said. "It's as if they've made us half-pregnant, I guess."

But St. Andrew's Ward Coun. Andrew Gill argued Brock cannot simply wait for the province and needs to look at alternative sources of funding, including debenturing to pay for the project.

"For Brock not to go forward with this partnership, especially after we've gone to the trouble of expropriating property and purchasing property in order to make this happen, I would say I'm very disappointed in Brock at this point," he said.

Gill said the city has been dealing with the issue "openly and in good faith" for more than a year, yet he only found out Thursday in an e-mail from McMullan that Brock is putting the project on hold.

"I think we've purchased $3.5 million worth of property downtown, and now to pull the rug out from under our feet? It's just not acceptable," he said.

But Lightstone argued it would be "irresponsible" for the university to take on debt to pay for the project.

"Would you go out and get a mortgage for your house not knowing where the money would come from to pay the principal and interest? Our board would be irresponsible to do that," he said.

Please see story by P. Downs in The St. Catharines Standard at:

Restaurants in the downtown are offering a chance to shake off the winter blahs while filling up with a good meal.

The Downtown Association is presenting its annual Winter O Licious event, which will see at least 10 restaurants in the core offering discounted three-course menus.

The campaign takes place Jan. 15 to 30, a typically slower time for many businesses, a time when they can use the extra boost.

The dining event was first introduced as Spring O Licious in 2007 and coincided with the Downtown Association’s spring restaurant walking tour. In 2008, the event was moved to winter, with another in the summer — times which better suited the participating businesses, said communication and events coordinator Elizabeth Fritshaw.

“The restaurants and the timing, they seem to work a little bit better to be in winter and then in the summer instead of the spring,” she said.

“January, with everybody, is a quiet time,” she added. “People feel, as usual, broke after Christmas, so it’s a good time for a break on a meal.”

The downtown especially needs the boost at this time of year, when the often blistery weather makes people want to cocoon at home, she said.

“It’s a bit of a motivator to get people out again.”

Stephanie Young, a server for La Scala Ristorante, said the campaign brings out people who might not otherwise come out in the winter.

She said during the winter event, the weekends are usually filled, while when it’s run in the summer or spring, every night is filled. As Winter O Licous starts on a Friday this year, it runs over three full weekends.

“It’s pretty good for business,” she said.

So far, 10 businesses have signed on. Fritshaw said the campaign has been simplified this year with restaurants being suggested to offer lunches at $10-$15 and dinners at $20 or $25.

People must call the restaurant directly and quote Winter O Licous to receive the fixed three-course menu.

Please see full story in Niagara This Week by M. Zettle at:

It's a space steeped in history, groomed to join a thriving grassroots arts scene in downtown St. Catharines.

Inside onefortyfive, the former Grantham Township Hall, an art gallery leads into a room with an urban photo montage.

Walls of earthy pastels frame a high-definition movie house, audio equipment and sound board.

Round tables and comfortable chairs fill the centre of the room.

It's the latest in a surge of new arts groups and initiatives that are transforming the core.

Community leaders say it's a taste of what will be an arts cornucopia when the new Niagara Centre for the Performing Arts and Brock University's fine and performing arts centre opens, likely in 2013.

"With onefortyfive, we wanted to be experimental and imaginative," said Troy Watson, the onefourtyfive director and a former pastor at Bethany Mennonite Church in Virgil.

"We also wanted to think outside the box and be relevant."

Watson is part of a group of families that have formed an arts-themed Christian spiritual group called the Quest Christian Community.

After meeting with civic and arts leaders, "we started sensing that there's something really happening downtown," he said.

They chose the King Street building for its stateliness and open space and renovated the rented digs over the past year.

Onefourtyfive will start with monthly movie screenings and concerts and a public gallery on Tuesdays.

Watson has a vision that other arts groups in the core increasingly share.

Their mission: to collaborate in the making and hosting of compelling music, art, film, theatre and dance.

"And that's the main thing, we want to work together," Watson said.

"This will help reinforce what we and many others are all about: partnerships, dialogue and sharing resources."

A half block down King Street, another cultural makeover has happened at the Sullivan Mahoney Courthouse Theatre.

Carousel Players has spearheaded an extensive renovation inside the old courthouse, now regained by the City of St. Catharines after a lease expired.

Arts groups and collectives from the Niagara Symphony to the Niagara Dance Company call the space home.

"We're seeing a renaissance happening downtown," said Jane Gardner, general manager of Carousel, a popular troupe that focuses on performances for schools and young people.

She praises the nearby Grantham building project as an example of arts entrepreneurship that is enriching the scene in the core and rejuvenating old buildings.

This kind of creative energy has already given Carousel a huge leg up.

Since it moved into the old courthouse on King Street, bookings at its theatre and rehearsal hall have increased to 47 weeks a year.

"That's a big leap from when we moved in and just occupied two tiny offices in 2001," Gardner said.

"With the support of the city and partners like the Ontario Trillium Foundation, we've been able to transform the second floor of the building into an arts centre that's being actively used by seven arts-related companies," she said.

The city has agreed to let Carousel use the second-floor space until the new Niagara Centre for the Arts and Brock University's Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts is built.

That will allow the other groups to stay at the courthouse for the time being.

An example of the success of this theatre cluster is the forthcoming performance of Crack, written by legendary playwright Sky Gilbert and performed by the local Essential Collective Theatre.

And it's not just the smaller groups that are thriving, Gardner said.

The Niagara Artists' Centre on St. Paul Street has revamped formerly aging digs into a vibrant arts hub.

"We've seen great things take place in communities when things like this happen," she said.

"It also draws more people to come downtown and live there, and stay beyond 5 p.m."

When arts activities continue into the evening, it makes the core a safer place, she added.

NAC, an established artists' collective, has recently worked on some well-received projects, including The Wine King of Dominion City parade float and installation by Guelph graphic artist Seth.

NAC director Stephen Remus, himself an experimental artist, is especially thrilled by the addition of onefortyfive's high-definition screen in a region that has too few cinema venues.

"So much of what's being expressed around the world is being done in film now," Remus said.

"There are limited resources, so we all want to do things together and there's a great spirit of collaboration happening.

"There is definitely a collection of energies right here."

Rebecca Cann, the City of St. Catharines' cultural programming supervisor, noted many of these successful downtown groups are partly funded through the city's cultural investment program.

"From where I'm sitting, that has been an important stimulus to that arts community," Cann said.

"I'd also place significant emphasis on the arts centre and its partners' leadership on it.

"It's that kind of profound commitment to the future of arts in St. Catharines that energizes and inspires the grassroots," she added. "It gives people optimism and sets their eyes to the future."

Artist Tobey Anderson, who runs the CRAM artists' collective gallery and studio downtown, said that when he came to the area in 1990, "there wasn't the kind of growth you're seeing right now."

CRAM, which launched in 2006 and is based on James Street, now has more than 24 artists. "Everybody bought into it, it's crazy," said the self-described CRAM dictator with a laugh.

He calls the city's cultural policy a "tremendous success."

"The whole climate is different; there's more opportunity (all around for cultural support)," Anderson said.

"While it's not the best time to sell artwork, there are people stepping out there and it really is a going concern in Niagara."

Patti Broughton, executive director of the St. Catharines and Area Arts Council, described an arts scene that is flourishing downtown.

"There's a real diversity of artists and arts organizations downtown," she said.

That phenomenon includes more multi-arts events like October's James Street Night of Art and In the Soil festival in April.

"The creative future of St. Catharines is building," Broughton said.

"We look forward to having Brock University students in the (forthcoming arts school) join the arts community downtown, and to a home for artists and audiences in the new arts centre."

Remus would like to see this momentum continue.

"People should realize that if they're looking for a cultural experience, they can find it in St. Catharines," he said.

"They can find it in NAC, Carousel, Suitcase in Point's cabarets — you shouldn't look first to Toronto or Buffalo.

"And there's no question these artists now really need the support of our community."

Please see story in The St. Catharines Standard by: D. Fraser at:

With the turn of the calendar to a new year, the City of St. Catharines is the new landlord at the old courthouse downtown.

The city's 25-year-lease with Sam Morabito, inked in 1984, ended on Dec. 31 and the landmark building was returned to the city's control.

All of the building's commercial tenants have left, warned by the city that it intended to use the building for city purposes. The only tenant left is professional theatre company Carousel Players, which has been guaranteed the right to stay until the new Niagara Centre for the Arts is opened in the old Canada Hair Cloth building, said Pablo Felices-Luna, Carousel's artistic director.

In 2007, Carousel was worried it would be evicted, too, but it pleaded with councillors for the right to stay, and in 2008, councillors agreed.

Carousel's ability to stay means six other theatre groups are also staying, said Jane Gardner, Carousel's general manager.

It also means Carousel was able to apply for and accept a $12,000 Trillium grant for upgrades to the entrance stairwells and rehearsal space and new carpeting for the corridors, Gardner said.

"It's such a gorgeous building and last year at this time, when we received word from the city that we could stay, we were able to get this beautiful rehearsal hall spruced up," she said. "It gives us a lot of confidence that we can stay here for at least three years."

City treasurer Shelley Chemnitz said the city is inspecting the building this week and a report on suggested uses for the building will be going to council in a few months.

City administrator Colin Briggs has said the courthouse could be home to new council chambers and offices for the mayor and senior city staff. Chemnitz said staff will prepare a proposal, including costs.

In the meantime, she expects it will cost taxpayers an extra $90,000 a year now that the building is back under city control.

Morabito leased the building for $1 a year for the first 15 years, with the rent jumping to $10,000 a year in 2000 and increasing by 5% a year to $15,512 by the final year. Morabito declined comment.

Morabito was responsible for the interior maintenance, while the city did exterior maintenance, including a three-year, $3.4-million landscaping, roofing and repointing job.

Please see story by M. Bergsma in The St. Catharines Standard at:

Elliott & Company will close its St. Paul Street store at the end of January, said Mark Elliott, but Mark and Krys Elliott, who are both artists, are not abandoning the city's core.

They will continue to rent warehouse and studio space in the rear of the building they have rented for 23 years, they said, and Mark said he still believes the city's core is poised for revival. He just wants to do other things and he can't afford to wait.

"I'm 55," Mark said, "and we are four or five years away from a recovery. Do I want to pour money into my business for five years before I get a return? We are going to be focusing on our art."

Krys, a painter who also works in mixed media, said she's looking forward to being able to devote herself to her art.

"I'll have the time to pursue my career professionally," she said. "I will be able to put the time and energy and thought into what I'm creating."

Both Mark and Krys will exhibit their work at CRAM, the artists' collective on James Street. Although Mark said they "work very differently," they are thinking of doing something together.

Please see full story in The St. Catharines Standard by M. Bergsma at:

OK, so we're getting a performing arts thingy in downtown St. Catharines.

Should be great. Looking forward to it.

Count Sheridan College student Elizabeth Seidl among those pumped about it.

But the St. Catharines native, who's in her final year of interior design at Sheridan, had one concern.

What happens to the students who graduate from Brock's school of fine and performing arts?

Frustrated by the lack of work spaces and affordable rents, do grads continue to leave St. Catharines?

From such real-life dilemmas do academic papers arise.

For her Final Design course at Sheridan, Seidl is working on a plan that involves converting an old downtown building into affordable living/work space for emerging artists.

The concept calls for six bachelor apartment-sized units for residents as well as common studio and storage space.

And the building she's selected for conversion?

The Wally Wemnant Carpet Market store at Geneva and Court streets.

As you may have read, Wally Wemnant is closing. Weally, it is.

With that in mind, Seidl approached owner Larry Whalley to see if he would be amenable to her having access to the building -- tape measure and sketch pad in hand.

Turned out to be an easy sell. Whalley's son is an accomplished sculptor and teaches art at the University of Regina.

The store provided a serviceable template for Seidl, a 30-year-old Sir Winston Churchill Secondary School graduate.

While a retail outlet in its most recent incarnation, a portion of the building was initially used, starting around 1910, as Gilmore's Garage. The Canada Bread Company operated out of there for about 10 years in the 1930s and 1940s. In the latter half of the 20th century, the 18,000-square-foot structure housed various businesses specializing in home furnishings.

Point is, knock out the false ceiling and you've got yourself a nice mini-warehouse for which to imagine floor plans.

In Seidl's mind, those plans included space for a wood shop, ceramics and sculpture studio, painting and drawing studio, print making studio and digital media lab.

The six residential apartment units, the rents for which would be government-subsidized, would only be available under short-term lease, six months to a year.

"By limiting the time in which a tenant can inhabit the space, the intent is to push into production those that are really passionate about art-making as a career," Seidl's paper states.

Allowing recent grads to develop their art and become established in the local arts community, adds Seidl, "will serve to enhance its vibrancy and improve the local economy."

The work/living space concept is supported by Niagara Artists Co. strongman Steve Remus.

Bricks and mortar are one thing, said Remus, then there's the community of artists.

For the arts scene to become a true economic driver as envisioned by various deep thinkers in the community, Remus said there must be places for artists to live cheaply and to hone their craft.

As noted, this is an academic paper. Emphasis this term was on the design proposal; next term it's more about practical implementation.

Still, Seidl hopes the idea is taken seriously in the community.

The location doesn't have to be the Wally Wemnant building. Any large space near the performing arts thingy will do.

What's important is that Brock students feel there's a place for them here after graduation.

"I always felt I had to get out," said Seidl, who took fine arts at York and McMaster universities, "and I think that's a bad feeling for people growing up in a city."

The excitement that the arts centre and the relocated school bring to the downtown and St. Catharines has the potential to change that perception, provided work opportunities and living arrangements are there, too.

"You should be able to stay and not be looked down upon for staying," she said.

Please see story in The St. Catharines Standard by D. Herod at:

http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2232470

Splashed in red and white, St. Catharines couple Carole and Ronald Anderson were dripping with Olympic spirit and Canadian pride.

Besides his candy cane-striped scarf and jacket, Ronald, 70, carried a massive Maple Leaf flag, and wore matching patriotic costume glasses through the streets of the city's core on Sunday afternoon.

"We just have this stuff," said 65-year-old Carole Anderson, one of about 6,000 people who jammed Market Square for the Olympic torch relay celebration and Winter Solstice party that followed. "We're very Canadian."

The real excitement for the couple came with the arrival of the torch, and joining in the thunderous cheers alongside thousands of others as torchbearer Mike Accursi carried the flame to the mainstage and lit the cauldron.

"It's excitement and adrenaline," Ronald said during the Winter Solstice party afterward.

"It just gets you worked up and brings Canada together."

After the flame fled downtown St. Catharines, James Street came alive in wintery fashion.

Adults tippled wine at the Jackson-Triggs Winery and Inniskillin Wines ice bar patio.

Artists did ice sculptures.

Ojibway storyteller Aaron Bell and the White Pine Dancers told native tales on a stage set up near the slide.

Children took turns flying down a 12-metre slide sculpted from ice on James Street.

Standing in line for the slide with her five-year-old daughter Kara, Katie Boychuck said it was nice to see people flocking to the downtown core.

"Anything that brings the community together and brings people in to celebrate the city is very important," said Boychuck, a downtown resident.

Sipping some wine with friends Sunday afternoon at the ice bar, downtown resident Kareem Albasel said he gets to see the city's core everyday and reflect on the promise it holds.

"We get to see the potential of it with something like today," Albasel said.

"I think more of this kind of thing needs to happen to get more people downtown."

Lead event organizer Kimberly Hundertmark said she couldn't have asked for a better turnout and event.

The St. Catharines Community Task Force spent a year planning the ode to Olympics and winter.

"There was this anticipation, and there was a pride that I don't think I've ever seen in our city before," Hundertmark said after the torch ceremony.

"Everybody was just really proud to be a Canadian. It didn't matter what culture you came from you were a Canadian today."

Please see story in The St. Catharines Standard by M. Beech at:

Anyone looking for a beer fridge?

Has the City of St. Catharines got a deal for you!

It's now the proud owner of the Knight's Inn on St. Paul Street and all the furnishings and paraphernalia that go with it.

Hmm, sounds kind of scary.

OK, so I really don't know if the market will soon be flooded with municipally owned fridges, mattresses, TVs and goodness knows what.

Point is, the city has possession, however

temporarily, of a downtown motel building.

I say temporarily because it hopes to demolish the building as soon as possible, probably early in the new year.

And here you were hoping to get a city-subsidized, luxurious-package- for-two stay in April.

The $1.69-million purchase, which was finalized earlier this week, is part of the land assembly for the new performing arts thingy being developed in partnership with Brock University.

The deal was supposed to close Dec. 1, but was delayed a couple of weeks so paperwork on the related sale of the Leonard Hotel could be completed.

The Leonard situation was resolved earlier this fall when local real estate investor Nick Atalick stepped forward with a $1.8-million offer for the building.

With all the loose ends finally tied up, that deal was also sealed this week, said Atalick, who reconfirmed plans to spend $4 million renovating the tired-looking, 80-year-old structure.

He said the Leonard will continue to operate as a hotel during renovations, which will start on the first and second floors.

About 40 residents are living on the upper three floors and will be allowed to remain there, said Atalick. Those rooms will be renovated when vacated.

You might also want to take a picture of the Leonard sign within the next few months because the name of the hotel will be changing.

A new one will likely be announced some time next spring when some rooms, the lobby and a portion of the facade have been renovated.

Existing commercial tenants on the ground floor will remain and the Coffee Pot shop is expected to re-open early in the new year.

Also, a new operator has been found for the detached building at the rear of the Leonard property, which over the past couple of decades had been home to various nightclubs. Atalick said it will open in the spring as part jazz club, part Starbucks-like cafe.

Let's get back to the combined performing arts centre/Brock school of fine and performing arts.

The next big step in the development process was supposed to be the hiring of a project manager by the joint Brock/city team. The plan was for city council to approve the selection in December, followed a short time later by approval from Brock's capital projects committee.

A preferred candidate has, in fact, been selected from a short list of eight firms, but ratification has been put off because, well, Brock doesn't actually have the money, yet, to do its part of the $101-million project.

Relax, all you cultured types out there. Your arts palace is still coming. I think.

Brock has identified the arts school as its top capital priority and has sought the appropriate financial share -- $26.1 million -- from the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities.

Given the certainty with which Brock officials have chatted up the school relocation to the Canada Hair Cloth site, one presumes they have received all the right signals from the province. They're still waiting, though, for the phone call, fax or e-mail that gives them the final good word.

Here's a clue that something's in the works.

The city is now anticipating that council will be asked to approve the project manager selection at its first meeting in February.

On that basis, expect a Brock dog-and-pony show celebrating acquired provincial cash within the next few weeks.

Meantime, keep your eyes and ears open for that fridge sale.

Please see story posted by Doug Herod in The St. Catharines Standard at:

http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2229583

Boosters of the new performing arts centre in St. Catharines can now join a virtual community, where they can read updates about the project, get the latest news, and lobby politicians.

A feature of the new website, Inspire Niagara, is a list of phone numbers and e-mail addresses for local officials to "make easy access to councillors," said Jennifer Wallace, a member of the Niagara Centre for the Arts Task Force.

Wallace and Elizabeth Fritshaw, events and communication co-ordinator for the St. Catharines Downtown Association, unveiled the site to St. Catharines councillors at this week's city council meeting.

Visitors to the site can find out about the progress of the project, read background reports and sign up to receive the project's newsletter to be launched in early 2010, said Fritshaw.

By joining Inspire Niagara, "you can be part of the inspiration," said Wallace.

The site design was donated by Alex Sampson, said Fritshaw, and the content is being written and managed by volunteers.

The site is meant to answer questions people might have about the project and to allow them to show their support, said Fritshaw.

The arts centre is part of a $101-million project that includes Brock University's new Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts to be built in downtown St. Catharines. The school will be located in the former Canada Hair Cloth building in the low level parking lot, while the centre for the arts will be located on St. Paul Street at the corner of Carlisle, with connecting links between the two.

The project includes five performances spaces, classrooms, offices, rehearsal space, studios and offices.

Fritshaw said the Inspire team is a group of people eager to see the project come to fruition. Members are from organizations and businesses who support the arts, she said, who believe the project has the ability to nourish and showcase local talent and be a cornerstone to revitalize downtown.

www.inspireniagara.com

Please see story in The St. Catharines Standard by M. Bergsma at:

http://www.scstandard.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2222928&

St. Catharines may have been lucky in the infrastructure lottery, but the three projects underway all come with strings attached that will end up costing local taxpayers even more.

But it's worth it, said St. Catharines Mayor Brian McMullan.

City councillors were handed a financial update this week, tallying up the costs — now and in the future — for the three infrastructure projects awarded to the city through federal and provincial stimulus funding.

The Niagara Centre for the Arts, a new artificial-turf sports field and the new Carlisle Street parking garage will cost a total of $87.6 million, said a report from city treasurer Shelley Chemnitz, with about one third, or $31 million, coming from the city.

The city will borrow some of its share, said Chemnitz, and cover the rest through hydro revenue.

The annual operating cost for the three projects, including debt repayment, will be almost $1 million a year, Chemnitz said, or a 1.3% property tax increase (which comes to $15 for the average homeowner). But if the proposed Shickluna generating station is approved and constructed, the cost will be reduced to about $200,000 a year.

McMullan said even without Shickluna revenue, taxpayers are getting a bargain.

"To get almost $88 million in capital spending for 1% in property taxes is very good value for the taxpayer, and I think most people would agree with that," McMullan said in an interview Tuesday. "This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to get improvements that will last for decades."

A jobs calculator provided by the Federation of Canadian Municipalities estimates that every $10 million in construction spending creates 11,500 jobs, including 5,400 construction jobs, although city administrator Colin Briggs called the estimate "one of those things that's hard to prove."

McMullan said the projects in St. Catharines are valuable for more than just their ability to create jobs. They will improve the quality of life for residents and help make the city an attractive place to live and work, he said.

Please see full story in The St. Catharines Standard by M.Bergsma at:

It might be a parking garage but it won't look like one and in many ways it won't act like one either, St. Catharines councillors were told Monday night.

The roof is designed to collect rainwater to water the city's downtown floral displays and it will be white to reflect the sun's heat back into the atmosphere, keeping the parked vehicles cool. There will be parking spaces for bicycles and electric scooters, and there will even be a hanging garden outside the third floor "sky lobby," St. Catharines councillors were told at Monday night's city council meeting.

The architects and engineers designing the new Carlisle Street parking garage presented their concept for the new building, and were given council's unanimous support to continue with their design.

The new $28-million garage, to replace the current garage which is crumbling due to salt damage, will also have the ability to provide electrical outlets to recharge the batteries of electric cars, city engineer Paul Mustard said.

But drivers shouldn't think they'll be getting the power for free.

When the technology becomes available, the city will install some sort of metering system "like a vending machine," said Mustard, with drivers pre-paying for the amount of juice they want.

Some councillors worried the features might end up being too expensive, or that the city might not get the building done in time to meet the March 2011 deadline for funding from the Canada Ontario Infrastructure Stimulus Fund.

City administrator Colin Briggs assured councillors both the deadline and the design were attainable.

Construction is expected to start by the end of March 2010 and be finished by March 2011, said Mustard. And the project team will provide regular status updates to council, said Briggs.

If the flashy features end up being too expensive, the design will be adjusted, said Briggs, who added he was "90%" certain the cost estimates were accurate.

Please see full story in The St. Catharines Standard by M.Bergsma at:

http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2210469

St. Catharines now has the road map to an Olympic-sized party.

City dignitaries on Sunday unveiled the winding route the Olympic torch will follow through the Garden City in two weeks — and details about the party it will spark.

"We are going to show Canada that St. Catharines has the Olympic spirit," Mayor Brian McMullan promised at the city hall announcement.

"This day is going to be a huge rallying point for our community."

The Olympic torch is travelling 45,000 kilometres across the country and passing through the hands of 12,000 bearers before it arrives in Vancouver for the opening ceremonies on Feb. 12.

The flame hits St. Catharines Dec. 20 around 12:30 p.m., travelling from Lake Street north of Carlton Street to Market Square, where torchbearer Mike Accursi will light the cauldron and heat up the downtown celebration.

"I'm pretty pumped about it," said the Holy Cross high school teacher, who is also a well-known lacrosse and hockey coach.

"It's an opportunity to inspire my kids... to show them it's important to try your best, not only to be the best performer you can be, but the best sportsman and person, too."

St. Catharines Conservative MP Rick Dykstra recalled the last time the torch visited St. Catharines in 1988, in the lead-up to the Calgary Olympics. "It was a big deal for people," he said, adding it should be again, with only 200 communities receiving a torch visit.

St. Catharines Liberal MPP Jim Bradley urged residents to show their patriotism during the day-long celebration. "This flame is a unifying force," he said, whether you're a fan of winter sports "or just a proud Canadian."

St. Catharines Downtown Association head Tisha Polocko said the community task force organizing the big day will give people plenty of opportunities to party.

The area of King and James streets will be reserved for the Olympic welcome, with musical groups like the Arkells, Shea D Duo and the Immaculate-Conception School children's choir performing from 11:30 a.m. onward.

PK Hummingbird Steel Band will play calypso music in honour of St. Catharines' twinned city, Port of Spain, capital of Trinidad and Tobago. As well, aboriginal groups BlueStone Cloud and the White Pine Dancers will perform.

Residents are encouraged to line the torch route to cheer on several other local torchbearers, including celebrity chef Anna Olson, artist Trisha Romance, Big Brothers Big Sisters employee Colleen Walker, Community Living St. Catharines board president Rick Jones and Brock University student Sabrina Parrotta.

After 2 p.m., the torch leaves the downtown to travel down Glenridge Avenue towards Thorold.

Downtown events continue until 4 p.m., however, with ice carvings and a special 11-metre "ice slide" for kids.

Torch route:

• Begins at Lake Street north of Carlton Street around 12:30 p.m.

• Travels down Lake to Welland Avenue.

• Follows Welland to Geneva Street.

• Follows Geneva to Church Street.

• Follows Church to city hall and the cauldron at Market Square around 1 p.m.

• From Market Square, the torch travels down King Street to Ontario Street starting around 2 p.m.

• Follows Ontario Street to Westchester, turning on Glenridge Avenue.

• Follows Glenridge to Glendale Avenue.

• Follows Glendale to Burleigh Hill and on to Thorold.

For more route and event information, visit www.stcatharines.ca.

Story in The St. Catharines Standard at:

Like any good Christmas elf, Pat Foster likes to spread holiday spirit.

Seems the ticket to bringing people joy in downtown St. Catharines is saving them some change.

Wearing a festive candy cane-striped cap with pointy ears, Foster spent Friday morning telling drivers that parking is free in the city's core during December.

"I've saved five or six people from feeding the meter, which made them very excited," said Foster, one of 10 "elves" hired this season by the St. Catharines Downtown Association.

"There you go, it's a pre-Christmas present, you don't have to pay the meter."

The inaugural band of merry elves is an attempt by downtown merchants to highlight all the core has to offer.

Besides parking tips, the elves will be handing out store coupons, downtown dining and city guides, and candy canes, of course.

"It's a goodwill ambassador concept to let people know what else is in downtown," said Elizabeth Fritshaw, events and communications director for the downtown association.

It's also a way of kickstarting the holiday shopping season, which is chugging along despite a flagging economy.

Like all retailers, the 200 downtown merchants and restaurateurs need to find new ways of attracting customers.

"I think every little big helps," Fritshaw said.

The whole economy has not recovered. Of course, the downtown merchants are in the same boat as everybody else."

Downtown elf Claire Rouleau, an Ottawa native and Brock University student, said she was happy to spread the good word about downtown.

Rouleau, a child and youth studies student, said she was targeting people who might not frequent downtown to encourage them to come back.

She hadn't encountered too many Scrooges on Friday.

"People have been pretty nice," Rouleau said.

"Some are hesitant. You'll offer them something and they're kind of like, 'How much do I have to pay you?' or What do you want from me?' We're just trying to help out."

Complimentary horse-drawn carriage rides will be offered at Market Square today and Dec. 12 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Santa Claus will also make an appearance on both days.

Free parking at city meters and lots begins at 12 p.m. daily and is limited to three hours.

Story published by M. Beech in The St. Catharines Standard at:

Joe Reid has fond memories of opening the Garden City's first parking garage

But the former mayor never expected he'd be around to close the Carlisle Street structure.

"I'm a little sad to see it go.... It was one of the only buildings with my name on it," a chuckling Reid said Friday, minutes after lending his crowbar to the "ceremonial first step" in demolishing the 33-year-old garage.

The 92-year-old was mayor when the five-level garage opened to much fanfare in 1976, with a plaque announcing "the facility became operational only six months after construction commenced -- a notable achievement for a project of this scale."

Reid gets to keep the plaque after he helped Mayor Brian Mc-Mullan and St. Catharines Liberal MPP Jim Bradley wrench it off the garage wall Friday.

The longtime St. Catharines politician, who also served as a member of Parliament, had mixed feelings about the rather unique demolition ceremony.

"I'd have loved this one to stay up longer ... although it looks pretty damn good for 33 years," Reid said of the garage, which needs to be replaced because of a crumbling support system. "But the new one is going to serve the people of St. Catharines well."

Passersby got a glimpse of architect renderings of the planned new garage at the ceremony.

The new eight-level, 730- space garage "will be as attractive as a parking garage can possibly be," said Bradley, who was a city councillor during the time Reid was mayor.

"It isn't a glamorous project ... but it's one of those important things that allows a downtown area to thrive."

The province and federal government will pay two-thirds of the cost of the $28 million project under the Infrastructure Stimulus Fund.

City council will have the chance Monday night to endorse the conceptual design for the garage, which includes 12,000 square feet of office and retail space and an exterior resembling an office tower rather than a traditional parking structure.

"This is a pretty exciting step for downtown St. Catharines," said McMullan, who called the garage a necessary building block for new core businesses and the planned performing arts centre.

Reid congratulated the current council on its decision to pursue the project.

He recalled opposition in the 1970s to the first parking garage. "Some people would always say, 'Oh, why do we need that?' " he said. "But it was needed. We proved that."

Plaque removal aside, the Cannington Group has already begun demolishing the building, although major tear-down work probably won't begin until the new year.

Under the terms of the Infrastructure Stimulus Fund, the project must be substantially finished by the end of March 2011.

- - -

Highlights of thepreferred design goingto council Monday:

730 spaces;

Eight levels, two underground;

12,000-square feet of street-level office and retail space;

A pedestrian plaza beside the office space along Carlisle Street;

A "sky lobby" overhanging the pedestrian plaza and connecting to the existing catwalk from the Garden City Tower;

An office building facade;

Potential for "green" design features like grey-water recovery and landscaping.

Story by M. VanDongen in The St. Catharines Standard at;

It's a tale of two cities — or at least, one city and one town — and how quickly their main commercial streets can rise from the ashes of devastating fires.

The first fire on July 26 ripped through 48-50 St. Paul St. and damaged neighbouring buildings, displacing three businesses and leaving 10 people living in apartments above them temporarily homeless.

More than four months after the suspected arson, signs of the costly fire are plainly visible. Three side-by-side buildings remain shuttered at the gateway to the main downtown retail street in St. Catharines.

The city hasn't yet received rebuilding plans from the buildings' owners.

A second fire on Oct. 27 wiped out two historic buildings on Niagara-on-the-Lake's main shopping street, causing $5 million damage and displacing several businesses and four tenants.

It took about a week for the charred remains and rubble to be removed, leaving nothing but a tidy hole at the foot of Queen Street.

Owners of the two properties have submitted plans to rebuild to the municipality.

The difference? Partially it comes down to the economic vitality of each downtown core, observers say.

The rebuilding process is largely driven by the property owners, Niagara-on-the-Lake planning director Stephen Bedford said.

"These guys want to build as quickly as they can," he said.

"The whole energy around the fact that these things are high-value properties is creating momentum."

St. Catharines, where downtown merchants are struggling against tough economic conditions, doesn't yet have the same momentum.

The two shopping streets are operating in "different worlds," said St. Catharines Coun. Mark Elliott, who owns a homeware and gift store on St. Paul Street and represents St. Patrick's ward.

"It's very expensive land in Niagara-on-the-Lake. Certainly there's money to be made in having a building sit upon it as opposed to it sitting vacant," he said.

"Currently, in downtown St. Catharines you don't have that rush to fill the space or a pending need to fill that space at the very moment."

Bruno Ariganello, owner of the property at 48-50 St. Paul St., couldn't be reached for comment Wednesday.

But in August, he told The Standard he had no immediate plans to rebuild after the eventual demolition of his building.

With so many vacant buildings downtown, it makes little economic sense to rebuild at present, he said.

However, the situation may change if Brock University's plans forge ahead as scheduled for a downtown school of fine and performing arts.

The city is working with the owners of the properties to ensure all orders issued by its building department are met, St. Catharines Mayor Brian McMullan said.

However, any decisions about rebuilding are ultimately up to property owners.

"If the decision is made by the owner that the property is not salvageable, then they certainly cannot in my opinion leave the building in that condition. One way or another it needs to be addressed," McMullan said.

The St. Catharines Downtown Association is keen to see the eyesore fixed, general manager Tisha Polocko said.

"It doesn't send a great message for our downtown. Obviously, we would like to see someone turn around and rebuild instead of having that vacant look," she said.

Elliott suggested future development in the lower-level parking lot behind St. Paul Street could lead to the revitalization of the properties hit by fire.

"If the buildings do have to come down, it provides an opportunity for something else to take its place," he said. 

Please see story in The St. Catharines Standard by P. Downs at:  

The City of St. Catharines' long-standing desire to bring the popular Niagara wine tourist route through the city's core is close to being realized.

Last month, members of the Wine Council of Ontario, which controls the The Official Guide to the Wineries of Ontario, took a major step in adding downtown St. Catharines to its wine route.

Members of the council's tourism committee approved including the St. Paul Street to Queenston Street line to their map.

To be official, the full board of the wine council must approve the change, which could happen as soon as February.

The earliest possible date for downtown St. Catharines to be added to the wine route is spring 2011.

Wine council president Hillary Dawson said members are impressed by the city's commitment to bringing the route downtown, and that it's nearly a certainty.

"I'm more than incredibly optimistic," Dawson said.

"I would be shocked if it didn't happen."

The wine route is the official guide for thousands of tourists who visit Niagara wine country every year, and has the potential to bring 155,000 cars through downtown St. Catharines annually.

City officials have been talking about bringing the wine route to St. Paul Street for years, but the idea has been held up by the wine council's lingering concerns over the deteriorating state of the downtown.

The city made a pitch to the wine council in July to change the route by outlining several future projects to improve the core, including a performing arts centre and new Carlisle Street parking garage.

McMullan said the wine council is a major marketer of Niagara and would help put St. Catharines on the global tourism map.

"From a tourism and a marketing point of view, it would certainly raise awareness of St. Catharines considerably and really provide some focus to our downtown," McMullan said.

City economic development director David Oakes said bringing the route downtown would spur more private investment in the core.

"What that does is it creates another layer of confidence from the wine council, from the wine industry in general, that downtown is in fact an area that is open for private investment related to wine and culinary," Oakes said.

Dawson said the wine council still has some lingering questions before making the change, including how the municipality will market the wine route and pending work on the Burgoyne Bridge.

The 94-year-old structure on St. Paul Street West may need to be replaced, and a forecasted construction start-date is three years away.

McMullan said he's been reassured motorists will still be able to cross Twelve Mile Creek and Highway 406 at St. Paul Street during the construction period.

Currently, Niagara wine country tourists are sent south of downtown St. Catharines to Pelham Road or north to Lakeshore Road as they head between wineries in west Niagara and Niagara-on-the-Lake.

Dawson said the other routes would remain, and St. Paul Street would be an addition to the map.

The wine council currently features 81 winery properties on its maps of Niagara, Prince Edward County, Toronto and York Region, Lake Erie North Shore and Pelee Island.

Earlier this month, five of the province's largest vintners — Andrew Peller Ltd., Vincor Canada, Colio, Magnotta and Kittling Ridge — pulled their membership from the non-profit trade association.

Dawson said it will be up to the wine council to decide next year if departed wineries will be included in future wine route maps, which are released every spring.

Article published in The St. Catharines Standard by M. Beech

St. Catharines Mayor Brian McMullan likes his job.

He likes it so much, he'd like to keep it for another four years.

With a municipal election next year and the date for registration as a candidate fast approaching, McMullan said he will be seeking re-election on the basis of what he believes is a successful term in office that's changed the mood of the city.

"I ran three years ago because of my concern about the state of the economy," said McMullan, who intends to file his nomination papers Jan. 4, the first available date.

"We were trying to enhance and strengthen the confidence and pride in ourselves as a community," McMullan said.

"I believe it has been strengthened."

McMullan said he made the decision to seek a second term this summer, after talking with "friends, family and colleagues."

"They asked me my impression of my performance and council's performance this past term," McMullan said. "So you do that gut-check: did I feel I was making a contribution? Did I enjoy my term?"

For McMullan, the answer to both questions was "yes."

"It's been a real honour and a privilege to serve the city," he said. "There is a tremendous respect in the community for the office of mayor."

McMullan also believes he has used his "position of influence to have an agenda, and to work with others to implement that agenda."

Although there's not much visible evidence yet, McMullan points to several key projects as proof of the success of his agenda.

• Two-way traffic: the city began implementing the change that had been approved by the previous council, resulting in a downtown that is "pedestrian friendly and traffic calming."

• Carlisle Street parking garage: demolition is set to begin this week, and the $28-million replacement with street-level commercial space and room for 700 cars is set to be built next year.

• The $101-million performing arts centre development with Brock University, including the Marilyn I. Walker school of fine and performing arts, the germination of which began under former mayor Tim Rigby.

• The wine route: At its meeting last month, the wine council's marketing committee unanimously approved a change to the wine route that would bring it downtown, McMullan said. The full board must now approve it, which could happen in February.

As a result of the renewed confidence in the city, developer Nick Atalick is investing roughly $5.8 million in the purchase and renovation of the Leonard Hotel on St. Paul Street, "which wouldn't be happening," McMullan said, without the city's investments in the downtown.

Please see full story in The St. Catharines Standard at:

http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2198480

Cole Salierno was extremely impressed with the floats, bands and costumed characters at the St. Catharines Santa Claus Parade Sunday.

But Cole, 7, made it clear you'll never see him on the inside, marching down St. Paul Street.

"Ahh, there's no way I'd do that," he exclaimed. "It's going to freak me out."

With that, his mother, Kim Salierno, had some news for him.

When Salierno was a teenager, she was brave enough to march in the Niagara-on-the-Lake Santa parade as Baby Bop from the TV classic Barney and Friends.

"People loved it; they would come right out and hug us," the St. Catharines woman told her son. "It was like you were a superhero."

Cole burst out laughing. "Still, no way," he said.

Thousands joined the Saliernos for the seventh annual parade, which stretched through part of downtown.

An elf-hat wearing Bob Meunier said being in the parade action is indescribable.

"Just very awesome," said Meunier, who was part of the Rankin Cancer Run float.

"Waving at everyone is actually a lot of fun; there's so much community spirit out there."

Please see full story in The St. Catharines Standard at:

With a freshly stocked and painted boutique only days old, Cheri O'Reilly-Ventresca is feeling upbeat about her second foray into retail business.

The economic climate seems a little more promising now than it did when she and a business partner closed the popular gift store White on White 17 months ago.

"I kind of think we're turning the corner of this," she said Monday after her first weekend of sales at CeCe and Co. in downtown St. Catharines.

As the Christmas shopping season gets underway, retailers are expressing cautious optimism.

Statistics Canada said Monday that retail sales have been steadily rising in some sectors since they plummeted at the end of 2008. Sales were up 1% in September, marking the seventh increase in nine months.

Sales were still 3.3% lower than last September, though.

O'Reilly-Ventresca said she and her partner ended White on White when business slowed, right before the economic downturn.

She fast-tracked plans to open another store when she discovered the original White on White space on King Street was available. It is charming downtown at Christmas, she said, with decorations, free parking and Father Christmas wandering about.

The store, named after her three-year-old daughter, teamed up with five other downtown retailers for the annual Six in the City open house tour this weekend and she said 300 to 400 people stopped by.

St. Catharines Downtown Association general manager Tisha Polocko said the open houses are usually a good indication of how the Christmas shopping season is going to go.

"I think everyone's sort of bracing themselves and trying to be optimistic," she said. "It's going to be tough all around. We can only hope people are looking at shopping locally and staying within the area."

Please see full story by K. Walters in The St. Catharines Standard at:

The Niagara Artists Centre is hoping its annual parody of fashion shows will help pay for the completion of new renovations and infrastructure costs.

The 10th annual Strutt "wearable fashion show" hit its stride last year when the centre sold 500 tickets to the event, said Stephen Remus, the centre's director.

"That was a real watershed year for us," he said.

The downtown St. Catharines centre is a nonprofit group devoted to supporting the production of contemporary art. Its show Saturday will be one of its primary fundraisers.

Remus said the show is set up like a fashion show, but is not about pouty faced models showing of high fashion.

"It's a lot more fun and light," he said. "It's a parody of a fashion show."

Artists contribute wearable art that is then worn on the runway. Artists are competing for prizes including the "Electronika" aware for the best piece that uses electricity and "Erotika" for the sexiest entry.

The event is being held at 150 Bunting Rd. and starts at 7 p. m Saturday.

Tickets are $25 for general admission with special prices for tables and the curators row.

For more information call 905-641-0331.

Article by G. Lafleche in The St. Catharines Standard at:

By Doug Herod posted in The St. Catharines Standard -

Major problem today. The column's about a parking lot.

Not very exciting, eh?

So, I thought about trying to jazz it up somehow.

You know, maybe suggest that the original design called for bike lanes, but the city backed off at the last minute.

Call a few cycling geeks and voila -- instant outrage.

Or perhaps I could say there was an official opening of the parking lot and Rick Dykstra was seen texting during the ceremony while a Liberal operative, wearing a false mustache and hiding behind a nearby planter, snapped pictures of the inattentive Conservative MP.

But who would believe that? Then, I remembered spotting something in the minutes of a recent St. Catharines city council gabfest held behind closed doors.

Coun. Andrew Gill introduced a motion, ultimately passed, that called on city staff to prepare a report on a potential property acquisition for downtown parking.

Hmm, this could work as a natural lead into my tale.

Gill explained that he was a mere pawn in the proceedings.

St. Catharines Mayor Brian McMullan had given a verbal report at the in camera meeting. Gill volunteered to move the motion so the mayor's wishes could be put into action. 

Gill said I should call McMullan for further edification.

Fair enough.

What say, Mr. Mayor?

Not much. At this point, it remains a confidential property item.

McMullan noted, however, that with the Carlisle Street garage no longer in the picture, downtown St. Catharines is facing a potential parking crunch, especially if any significant private development occurs in the next couple of years.

(You may recall that 100 or so spots were also removed from the downtown market two months ago when Niagara Region leased a private lot off William Street for police use.)

McMullan said the matter being discussed behind closed doors is seen as an interim solution to the parking problem. The more permanent fix will occur when Son of Carlisle Garage opens in a couple of years.

From what I can gather, it's got something to do with investigating a proposal that would allow an existing business access to more parking, thus freeing up other spots in the downtown.

OK, time for my parking lot story.

Drum roll, please.

The lot on which the old Queen Street Y once stood was finally paved last month.

I know what you're thinking. YOU MADE US WAIT FOR THIS?!?! Well ... yeah.

Seriously, where else could you turn for this sort of intensely local news?

The Globe? The CBC? The Queen Street Bugle?

I figured I owed this update to the legions of downtown sluggos and sluggettes who for years moseyed over to the Y for noon-hour workouts.

They'd be happy, I thought, to know the remaining image of their beloved sweat palace that was razed in the fall of 1994 need no longer be a dusty, potholed, gravel parking lot.

It can now be a clean, smooth, asphalt lot. With painted markings!

And to think the facelift was only 15 years in the making.

Well, that's not necessarily true.

For 14 years, it's quite possible upgrading the lot was never a consideration.

About a year ago, though, Hughson Business Space Corp. of Hamilton bought the property at 55 King St. (CIBC building), which includes the parking lot in question.

Hughson, which also owns The Building Formerly Known As Corbloc, paved the lot as part of a general spruce-up of its new holding.

Any chance of recovering your old 1980s headband that had been kicking around the gravel lo these many years is now gone.

Just thought you'd like to know.

Warrant Officer Brown was among five deceased local notables who were honoured at the annual ceremony, whose highlight is the lighting of a tree at St. Catharines city hall.

The top strands of the tree — representing the honoured deceased — were the first to light up the night.

Each donation to the campaign turns on more bulbs and represents a person who is honoured or remembered.

Other notables recognized in St. Catharines were Niagara children's aid pioneer John C. Elliott, physician and health-care leader Dr. Heime Geffen, businessman Bob Grimm and public relations powerhouse Lou Cahill, who died last year at age 94.

Cahill's son, former Standard photographer Denis Cahill, joined other family members for the event.

"I guess when the lights go on, dad is here," Cahill said. "He was a big booster of all things St. Catharines, especially the hospitals here."

The campaign began in 1986 as a fundraising initiative of the St. Catharines General Hospital Foundation.

Proceeds have been used to buy equipment for the operating and emergency rooms intensive care unit and pediatrics unit.

Almost $1.2 million has been raised in the campaign's 23-year history.

A similar Tree of Lights launch took place last week at Thorold's firehall on Towpath Street. The combined goal for the campaigns is $75,000.

Funds raised this year go to the purchase of BiPAP machines for respiratory therapy at the St. Catharines General.

The campaign ends Jan. 15.

Please see full story in The St. Catharines Standard by D. Fraser at:

Downtown St. Catharines has been decked out in shiny retro holiday spirit with new Christmas decorations to replace faux poinsettia baskets of years gone by.

The golden stars and tinsel pole wraps, at a cost of $40,000, started showing up on three city streets over the past week.

They were paid for by the St. Catharines Downtown Association through its business improvement area levy.

"It was definitely something the merchants wanted and we didn't want to leave anyone out so we did the entire length of St. Paul Street," said Tisha Polocko, general manager of the association.

A large wreath will be hung at 136 St. Paul St. by the walkway to the lower level parking lot.

The sprinkling of new decor is leading up to the major holiday shopping season, which left merchants with lower sales last year because of the poor economy. Polocko said they realize it's not going to be "outstanding" this year either.

"Obviously, we want to be optimistic and hopefully it will be a little better. Hopefully when consumers are looking for a unique gift they'll come here," she said, adding downtown merchants have items not found in malls and box stores.

The downtown is also home to several special holiday events, including the Santa Claus parade and horse-drawn carriage rides.

The association is hopeful the new Christmas decorations, chosen by the association's board, will get people in the shopping mood.

Baskets of faux red poinsettias, which hung from lampposts throughout the core since 2003, had seen better days.

"We had them refurbished once but the lifespan had passed," Polocko said.

The association wanted decorations that could span the whole street, despite some older lampposts, and found the tinsel pole wraps and lighted stars from a Mississauga company fit the bill.

The stars look identical but are slightly larger on the bigger concrete poles. "We were able to do that and have a nice even flow," Polocko said.

The decorations are on St. Paul, Queen and James streets. Polocko said the association hopes to add King and Court streets in the future as cost permits.

The association has had 20 trees along the street strung with vibrant white LED lights, from 1 St. Paul Street west past Carlisle Street, at an additional expense.

Please see article in The St. Catharines Standard by K. Walters at:

Tue, 2009-11-10 10:12.

Barbara Earle (Earl) ,First Vice President, Royal Canadian Legion Branch 24 says the section of St. Paul Street West over the Burgoynne Bridge holds a special place in our local history.

Soldiers returning home from the bloody trenches of World War One Europe marched over the Burgoynne Bridge from the St. Catharines train station.

St. Paul Street is a Regional Road.

Earle says with the help of St. Catharines Mayor Brian McMullen - who enlisted the help of Regional Councillor Jim Zeoli  - street signs have been erected northbound at Burgoynne Bridge and at the corner of St. Paul and Ontario Streets just in time for Remembrance Day services tomorrow (Wed) at the St. Catharines cenotaph.

Remembrance Day services begin with a parade tomorrow morning at 10 am from the Royal Canadian Legion on Church Street.

Article courtesy Rick Flemming at 610 CKTB News here: 

Kelly Gillard, 35, owner of Strega Cafe in St. Catharines, is an example of the steadfast spirit women entrepreneurs are famous for.

Gillard worked in kitchens for years and started a venture with the help of a government loan program at age 20.

"I really wanted do something different very early on," she said. But the St. Paul Street vegetarian eatery she wanted never got off the ground and she went bankrupt.

About a decade ago, she made another effort by starting a Church Street restaurant with partners called Strega Allegra that failed after 18 months.

The next effort -- a simple cafe on King Street with Italianstyle fare -- was the charm. It opened in April 2001.

"By then, I knew what to do and people were very supportive of me," Gillard said. "The staff that worked under me at my previous job helped me build up this place."

Gillard is also a mother to two small children. "I probably would never have done this (earlier on) if I'd had kids at the time. It's really hard."

"I think women can sometimes be misled," she added. "We're told we can have it all, but that really means we can do it all and we do," she said, adding her husband, Steve Watson, is very supportive.

There are no regrets, but the restaurant business is a tough one, she said.

"You don't make much, but you eat well, drink well and you meet lots of nice people.

"I also find it very stimulating because I'm doing different things all the time."

More women like Gillard are getting into businesses because it's in their nature, said Maria Sleight, owner of Verity in downtown St. Catharines.

Their flexibility and moxie keep the ship steered in the right direction.

"I think women are built with no fear," Sleight declared with a laugh inside her St. Paul Street women's clothing store. "If you fall, you dust yourself off and get back on your feet again."

She suggested that men often see themselves as breadwinners who need a regular paycheque, no matter what the circumstance.

"Being an entrepreneur is a gamble, especially in these times -- and women will accept less to move forward.

"I think men don't really like to do that."

Sleight thinks many career women also reach a stage in their 30s and 40s when they want a change.

She worked in retail and started her business in 1998: "It took me years to get to that place," she said. "I really felt I was doing the right thing and I was confident."

Please see full storey by Don Fraser in The St. Catharines Standard at:

I'm all for restoration work on old buildings. I get a little uneasy, though, when the facelift is for a structure that's younger than me.

I don't know, it makes me feel ... vulnerable.

At any rate, that's the case in downtown St. Catharines where workers are beavering away on the exterior walls of the old post office building.

Yeah, I realize it hasn't been a letter-sorting joint for years. But for a certain large demographic in St. Catharines the building will always be identified as such. (For similar identifiers, see: old highway 8, old Provincial Gas building, Corbloc, Merritton High School, old K-Mart plaza, old Towers plaza etc.)

The edifice at 32 Church St., owned, as it were, by Public Works Canada, opened for business on March 4, 1957.

See what I mean? A mere 52 years old and it's getting a nip and tuck.

Yikes!

And to think the city waited about 125 years to freshen up the outside of the old King Street courthouse.

St. Catharines is a mere municipality, though. Doing the old post office rehab are the feds, the Daddy Warbucks of governments.

Oh well, as long as the guys and gals in Ottawa are throwing money around, they might as well spend some on keeping public buildings in shape.

I'm not sure how the structure is viewed today by the populace, but it was certainly a big deal when the federal building opened for post office business in 1957.

For one thing, the modern, spacious, brightly-lit, well-ventilated structure was replacing cramped, stuffy, dimly lit, 19th century quarters at the corner of King and Queen streets.

For another, it was, well, the post office.

"A post office is the centre of communications for every municipality," noted Mayor John Smith at the ribbon-cutting. "We look forward to the many years of service this building will provide."

The Standard was gushing in its appreciation of the "new landmark," calling it "a credit to the city and to Canada as a whole."

"Built of solid stone and marble, it reflects Canada's stability. It's spaciousness and brightness reflects the country's size. Its exquisite marble carvings speak of the beauty -- God-given as well as man-made -- of our country," stated an editorial.

Kinda reminds me of my description of the four-pad when it opened. Minus the exquisite carvings thing.

The artwork in question, as some of you may know or recall, refers to the official flowers of each Canadian province that are displayed on the back wall of the main stairwell.

The building was a pretty good hub of public activity over a few decades, but that waned in step with its gradual demise as a post office.

Canada Post opened a new processing plant in Stoney Creek in 1990, taking over duties previously conducted in downtown Hamilton and St. Catharines.

Letter carriers were relocated to a Bunting Road facility in May 1998.

A few months later, Canada Post's downtown retail operations were "temporarily" moved to 4 Queen St.

That transfer became permanent, and with it went any post office connection to the grand stone-and-marble federal building on Church Street.

As has been the case for some time now, the 78,600-square-foot building is home to the Canada Revenue Agency. (Some space is vacant and property manager SNCLavalin ProFac also has a small office there.)

The current rehab of the building includes several accessibility upgrades: improvements to front and rear ramps, installation and stabilization of handrails, repairs to washroom power doors and installation of audio indicators in the passenger elevators.

The restoration work on the exterior walls is essentially preventative maintenance. Mortar between the stonework is being removed and replaced. There are also some "structural issues in the corners" that will be corrected.

Half the building is being done now; the remainder in 2010.

Work started on this phase in late September and is expected to be completed before the end of the year.

Published in the St. Catharines Standard by Doug Herod.

Can't say there's been a heckuva lot of activity in downtown St. Catharines lately.

Maybe that's why workers hanging around the walkway created by the razing of 136 St. Paul St. caught my attention the other day.

The demolition exposed exterior walls on adjacent buildings that had been hidden and protected from the elements for more than 90 years.

The protection allowed advertising signs that had been painted on the walls near the turn of the 20th century to be preserved in surprisingly good condition. The highly visible ads provide an insight into the commercial/retail world of that era.

So, when I saw the aforementioned fellows working on the walls, including putting stucco panels on one section of brick, I thought the worst.

Egads, were the old outdoor signs about to be hidden again, covered in some evil fashion by heritage-challenged no-goodniks?

Nah.

They were just carrying through on a city-awarded, $38,000 contract to repoint the walls' stonework and brickwork that may have been damaged during the demolition. And it's only that one small section that will have the stucco covering.

Still, inquiring minds want to know: What of the signs' future?

Well, if the St. Catharines heritage committee had its way, they'd be preserved in some manner.

"These are undoubtedly the oldest and best-preserved examples of this vanishing art form," a heritage committee report prepared this past spring said of the painted ads

"Having been uncovered, they ... provide a tangible link to some of the long forgotten industries and mercantile establishments in the downtown during the late 19th and 20th centuries."

The businesses being advertised include Chas. Young and Son (the sign was likely painted circa 1904-1912); American Bazaar (circa 1896-1905); St. Catharines Cotton Batting Factory (early 1880s); and The Farmer's Mill (late 1870s). The Ecclestones clothing sign on the wall west of the walkway is believed to have been painted some time between 1904 and 1919.

While the heritage facts gathered by the committee are fascinating, I was most startled by a modern chunk of retail history contained in the report. In citing past tenants of 142 St. Paul-- the building directly east of the walkway -- it was noted a restaurant called Ye Olde English Grill was housed there in 1940.

Who knew phoney British pubs existed even then?

And then from 1941 to 1971, it was the home of Sandra Hat Shoppe.

Wow. A store devoted to hats lasted 30 years in downtown St. Catharines.

I figure it must have been selling ball caps.

Anyway, the reason the heritage committee became involved is that a couple of members met with Branco Sablijic, owner of the 142 St. Paul St. building, to see what plans he might have for his newly exposed wall.

He apparently mused about the possibility of painting it or putting up vinyl siding.

Yikes!!!

The committee then put together its 18-page report, detailing the historical significance of the signs.

I chatted with Sablijic Friday and he appreciates people's interest in the old signs.

He said he's content to leave his wall alone for now, especially since the city is repairing it. But, he added, it's also because he doesn't have the money to do anything else.

As for how others may wish to see the signs preserved, that's up in the air.

The heritage committee sees three possible options: using a sealant; touching up the paint; leaving the signs alone and letting Mother Nature take its course.

It's invited a Parks Canada heritage expert to look at the signs and assess the options.

Depending on what's recommended, issues of governance and cost will have to be worked out.

Whatever. I'm in favour of keeping the signs visible. They really are a neat part of the landscape, showcasing the downtown's distinctiveness over malls and big-box outlets.

And, who knows, their esence might help lead to the return of the hat shop.

Posted by Doug Herod in The St. Catharines Standard

Three months after they were burned out of their St. Paul St. stores, two businesses are planning to rise from the ashes.

The owners of Liberty Bicycles and Out of the Past both say the fire that left a charred hole at the foot of St. Paul St. in July hasn’t soured them on downtown.

“I’m a downtown guy. I’ve always worked downtown and lived downtown. I think it’s important,” Liberty owner Kurt Gwisdek said Thursday.

Liberty has been running a small repair shop a few doors down the street from its old location at 40-42 St. Paul St., where it operated for 17 years.

But Gwisdek said he’s finalizing a deal to buy an old warehouse to become the shop’s new home by the beginning of March.

Until the sale is final, Gwisdek said he wants to keep details of the location quiet, except to say that it’s in the downtown core.

The new store will be “substantially” larger than the previous shop, he said.

“I know we’ve lost a lot of sales in the meantime, between the fire and now. There’s nothing we can do about that. It’s just life,” Gwisdek said.

“Once we open up the new place, I hope we can regain some of that business.”

Out of the Past owner Tammy Ziegler said she’s been scouting St. Paul St. locations to re-open her vintage clothing store and expects to be back in business by May.

“I like downtowns. I hate malls. I like to have an alternative and it’s kind of alternative shopping,” said Ziegler, who also runs locations under the same name in Hamilton and Kitchener.

The devastating July 27 fire at 48-50 St. Paul St. damaged neighbouring buildings, displaced three businesses and left 10 people living in apartments above them homeless.

Niagara Regional Police said at the time they were looking for at least two men who set the blaze after forcing their way into one of the apartments.

An ongoing investigation hasn’t yet led to any arrests.

Please see full story by P. Downs in the Welland Tribune at:

If those bricks could talk, well, they'd talk dirty.

The tunnel of aged bricks and mortar, recently excavated from under King Street, is big enough for an adult to crouch inside and too heavy to move without a backhoe.

It's not your typical heritage building, but the old manhole shaft was at least a transient home for more than a century of St. Catharines sewage.

Downtown resident Alice Rabideau figures that makes it a piece of history worth preserving. "It's an artifact of our original sewer system, and it looks pretty neat," said the city history buff, who spotted the massive sewer relic while walking with her parents, Basil and Sonia Grogono, past construction on King Street earlier this week.

"To think that it has been running well for almost 130 years ... there's not too much infrastructure that we put in right now that you'd expect to last that length of time."

Construction crews are laying new water lines, and sanitary and storm sewer pipes along the busy downtown thoroughfare from Academy Street to Court Street, said city engineer Paul Mustard.

But first, they have to pull up the original 30-centimetre-wide clay pipes and brick manhole shafts that until recently were still doing the job.

Pipe layer Mike Radowsky said city records suggest the brick manholes, each more than a metre in diameter and plunging three metres into the ground, could date back as far as 1879. If that's true, the old infrastructure would have originally been buried only a few years after St. Catharines incorporated as a city in 1876.

The heavy brick tunnel is destined to be broken into pieces and discarded, but Rabideau convinced workers to temporarily set it aside for history buffs to ogle.

Rabideau has called around to see if anyone is interested in salvaging the hidden history, but so far no luck.

Mustard said the city has replaced many old sewer lines over the years, but relics from the late 1800s still exist -- and still function.

He doesn't feel any sewer sentimentality, however.

"No one has ever asked me to save a piece before," he said. "I suspect the guys who buried them in the first place would be laughing in their graves if we did."

Even so, Rabideau figures there's no harm in asking. She thinks the distinctive brick and mortar manhole would look good on a street island, for example.

"I don't think I'd get away with taking it home with me, although I do like to collect old things," she said, laughing. "Maybe I should have an enormous sewer pipe from the 1870s as a fire pit?"

For now, the largest surviving chunk of the former manhole is sitting near the east end of King Street.

Please see full storey in The St. Catharines Standard at:

And on Wednesday, he was looking slightly frayed.

He was hunkered inside his office, chin-deep in packages of designer shirts.

On one hand, he was negotiating prices on the phone. The other tapped out specs for new business cards.

In early November, Herzog’s and The Boardstore next door will leave the downtown and head for new digs at the SmartCentres Fourth Avenue power centre.

It marks the end of 92 years in the downtown at 449 St. Paul St. and the passing of a retail era in the core.

For some, it’s a surprising move given Herzog’s years of devotion to downtown St. Catharines revitalization and two-way traffic conversion.

These efforts are coming to fruition, with two-way a reality and a Brock arts school and performing arts centre slated for the area.

A developer also recently announced a plan to spend $4 million to renovate the nearby Leonard Hotel to its former glory.

So why the move?

“This is strictly business,” Herzog said. “My decision to move is strictly for my existing businesses to continue.

Please see full storey in The St. Catharines Standard by D. Fraser at:

http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2121237

Plans to use a city grant to add three new street-level apartments to a downtown building have been stalled by a St. Catharines councillor who wants the city’s core to be kept commercial.

Before any tax dollars go towards converting the building at 241 St. Paul St. to residential apartments, St. Patrick’s Coun. Mark Elliott wants to know what impact the change will have on the streetscape.

Downtown apartments tend to be rented by students, Elliott said in an interview after last week’s city council meeting, and students are famous for using bedsheets as curtains.

“Nothing will turn downtown into a slum faster than bedsheets in the windows,” Elliott said.

City planner Paul Chapman had recommended the city give the building’s owner $80,000 — or $5,000 for each of the 16 new residential units being created in the building. He also recommended $10,000 in facade improvement grants and the waiving of $5,600 in building permit fees.

But Elliott said he doesn’t want taxpayers’ money contributing to a project he thinks might be bad for the downtown.

In April, Councillors agreed the city should ban street-level residential development downtown, but the formal process for enacting the ban hasn’t been implemented yet. In the meantime, Elliott said the changes planned for 241 St. Paul are a good chance for the city to evaluate its policies on boosting business.

Andrew Hellwig, the architectural design consultant who applied for the grants on behalf of the building’s owner, Niagara-on-the-Lake lawyer Harry Fieguth, said the proposal includes three units fronting on to Garden Park, and 16 units on the building’s second floor. All of the units are proposed to be bachelor apartments.

Elliott said he has no problem with second-storey residential units, but he wants the city’s downtown streetscape to be consistent.

“If you want to know how to run a successful shopping district, just look at a shopping mall,” Elliott said. Malls establish “consistent retail fabric,” he said, “they don’t break it up with store, bar, bar, bar, office. If you add residential, you break it up even more.”

Elliott said the three small commercial units on the Garden Park side of the building that were proposed to be converted to residential units, are examples of small business spaces that are perfect for people starting new ventures who can’t afford large spaces on a main downtown street.

Please see full storey in The St. Catharine Standard by M. Bergsma at:

***

A local real estate developer has purchased the worn-looking Leonard Hotel for $1.8 million and plans to spend another $4 million renovating the 80-year-old building to its past glory.

"It will be a showpiece when we're finished with it," said Nick Atalick, president of the Atalick Group.

The deal closes at the end of November and Atalick said renovations will begin the next day.

The purchase of the Leonard goes hand-in-glove with the city's acquisition of the Knight's Inn across the road.

The city had reached a conditional deal for the Knight's Inn this summer, the dollar value of which ($1.69 million) was predicated upon Han being able to sell the Leonard. At the time, Atalick was involved in negotiations for the Leonard.

With the Leonard deal signed, it means the city's purchase of the Knight's Inn -- part of the land assembly for the performing arts centre -- can close at the end of November, too.

Atalick said his company's interest in the hotel, designed by noted St. Catharines architect Robert Macbeth and built in 1929, was "totally" due to previously announced government investments in the area.

"When the city drops $110 million on one side of the street and then about $35 million for a parking garage on the other side, I think that's the reason why we said we'd move forward and buy something for the sole purpose of renovating it," Atalick said.

The Leonard makeover will include new windows, elevators, mechanical system and roof.

The 80 rooms that exist now in the six-storey building will be reduced to 60 "so they'll be larger and nicer."

They'll also get new flooring, bathrooms and insulation; some will become suites and get new kitchenettes.

Extensive work will be done on the lobby and the St. Paul Street facade will be brought back to its original appearance.

"One of the things we will not be doing to the exterior is painting it like the Welland House," said Atalick, in reference to another former hotel of note in St. Catharines.

Also unlike the Welland House, Atalick said there is no intention of turning the Leonard into a student residence.

There are plenty of those type of units already in the downtown, he said.

While a recently completed blueprint for the downtown suggested the Leonard was well-positioned for transformation into an upscale boutique hotel, Atalick said that's not the short-term plan. "There's no sense building now for a market that doesn't exist."

Instead, the renovations are geared towards the existing rental market, albeit "on a better scale."

Atalick said the new Leonard would offer "mid-price accommodation of excellent quality."

But it would also be prepared to go more upscale once the performing arts centre is up and running in a few years time.

"As the market matures and the demand matures, then, yes, we could turn it into a boutique hotel."

A boutique hotel, but not necessarily the Leonard Hotel.

Atalick said the future name is still up in the air.

The company appreciates the history of the 80-year-old business, but also recognizes the name hasn't exactly been associated with high-end accommodation the past few decades. Atalick said plans call for the lower floors to be renovated by the end of next spring and the upper floors completed by the end of the summer.

Please see full story by D. Herod in The St. Catharines Standard at:

According to Patty Broughton, director of the St. Catharines and Area Arts Council, this model's success elsewhere could only be advanced in a town with such a devoted art community.

The results of the project have been overwhelmingly successful. The attendance each month has continually grown since its May inception, and the response has been positive from artists and attendees alike.
"It's been really exciting, actually," said Broughton. "We've had a great response from the artists who've been involved, and definitely from the public who've come to do the walk over the last five months. So we're very pleased for the first year with the way it has gone. It really has been a great way to spend a Friday evening downtown."

This Friday, Oct. 2, is slated as the final Art City evening of 2009, Broughton is hopeful that this will continue next summer and more businesses will get involved. Furthermore, she is optimistic that this event will continue to revitalize downtown St. Catharines.
"We hope it's a way for the community to come back downtown, to rediscover downtown and find out it's a great place to spend some time with arts and culture, with your family and friends in a really fun and safe environment."
Art City takes place from 6 - 9 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 2 in downtown St. Catharines. Visit stcartscouncil.ca for more information.

Please see full article in The Brock Press at: 

My best memory was the Event in the Tent when Great Big Sea played. My wife and I had gone to Beantrees for dinner before the show, and Alan Doyle of GBS was sitting in Beantrees with his sister eating dinner.... He was the nicest person to talk to, signing our tickets for the show and also the menus from Beantrees. It's now framed and hanging on our living room wall. It was an awesome concert that night.

-- John Barwell

The spirit of the community that everyone displays. You walk downtown during the grande parade or throughout Montebello Park during the week and everyone is laughing, smiling, in a good mood, saying hello.... It seems to bring out the best in everyone in the region and during these economic times I think that is something that we desperately need.

-- Dan Bernard

The lines were painted on the pavement, the pylons were hauled away and two-way traffic rolled onto Ontario Street.

The latest conversion experience in downtown St. Catharines went off without a hitch, said transportation services manager Kris Jacobson, who surveyed the scene for several hours Wednesday morning.

No screeching of tires, no loud honking of horns, agreed Shane Thomson, manager at the City of St. Catharines’ small-business enterprise centre, whose office on the ground floor of One St. Paul overlooks the newly two-way intersection.

Please see full storey in The St. Catharines Standard at: 

Get ready for the next round of two-way traffic conversion in downtown St. Catharines.

By Friday, asphalt should be laid for the final two-way section of Ontario Street, said Kris Jacobson, manager of transportation services for the City of St. Catharines.

The line painting and conversion will likely happen overnight Tuesday to Wednesday for that stretch and its St. Paul and King street connections.

“That should happen if everything goes to plan and we get some good weather,” Jacobson said.

Meanwhile, sewer and watermain work is also taking place on King Street between Academy and Church streets.

Paving and conversion for King between Carlisle and Court streets should take place by the fall, weather permitting.

Jacobson said there may be a change in plans for the rest of St. Paul Street near the intersection of Geneva, Queenston and Niagara streets.

“If you’re on Geneva Street heading to the golf course, we may allow a right-hand turn onto St. Paul,” he said.

Jacobson said that southwest-bound lane on St. Paul could open this month or early October.

“The remainder of it — that whole multiple intersection area — is still being studied by the city and Niagara Region,” he said. “We still have Niagara Street and a piece of Church Street by the firehall that also has to be sorted out.

“So we're taking a fresh look at that entire piece and how it fits into two-way traffic,” Jacobson said. “We’re hoping to have a plan we can make public this winter.”

Jacobson said the switch has gone well so far.

“Quite frankly, we’re hearing a lot of positive comments,” he said. “I have heard of no major hiccups with the operation.”

He said while there’s been some congestion at St. Paul and Geneva, it’s usually during standard peak traffic periods.

Burgoyne Bridge tie-ups have also been an occasional issue.

Traffic signals at St. Paul and Westchester Crescent aren’t operating at their peak efficiency, Jacobson explained.

“Once we get that asphalt laid down and new sensors in the road — and a left-hand turn to Ontario Street — you’ll see that piece become a lot more efficient.”

Please see full storey in The St. Catharines Standard at:

http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1725089

It has been one big aggravation for Mai Vi owner Hung Vo.

A fire on St. Paul St. Monday left that St. Catharines artery closed between Ontario and Queen Sts. for almost two days.

That meant temporary unemployment for 10 people and several thousand dollars in losses for the St. Paul St. restaurateur.

“Everyone has had to go home because no one can get access into here,” Vo said. “It's very frustrating.”

“My staff need money, some of them have kids. Everyone’s hurting, my staff’s hurting.”

Damage estimates are at least $500,000 following the blaze that destroyed 48-50 St. Paul St. There were no injuries.

Ten people were left homeless. the Out of the Past clothing store was destroyed and Liberty Bicycles damaged.

Chief fire prevention officer Jim Waycik said police are now handling the investigation because it’s considered an arson.

“Once it becomes a crime scene, we don’t get involved,” he said.

“We are confirming arson,” added Niagara Regional Police spokeswoman Const. Jacquie Forgeron. “The NRP do have some strong leads and we are confident we’ll be able to identify the suspects.

“Police and the (Ontario) fire marshal are still at the scene clearing up their portion of the investigation,” Forgeron said Tuesday.

City of St. Catharines engineers are investigating the gutted property to see if there are risks to pedestrians and vehicles, she said.

St. Paul Street between Ontario and William Sts. reopened Tuesday afternoon.

Kris Jacobson, the city’s manager of transportation services, said the section between William and Queen Sts. was to remain closed, as demolition work begins on the building.

“Hopefully by the end of the week, we’ll have it all back (open),” he said.

Tisha Polocko, general manager of the St. Catharines Downtown Association, sympathized with people and businesses affected by the blaze.

“Obviously, we wouldn’t want to lose any building on St. Paul Street,” Polocko said. “For the businesses (affected), it’s a huge loss. It’s definitely a hardship and we’re very concerned about that.”

Bruno Ariganello, the owner of the destroyed building, said the demolition will likely start Wednesday.

“It’s whirlwind,” Ariganello said. “There are no plans (for the site) whatsoever.

“You have the option to rebuild it or sell it and let someone else rebuild it. Right now, the big thing is just tearing this thing down.”

A message left with the Ontario Fire Marshal’s office, which is also investigating the blaze, was not returned Tuesday.

Forgeron said police are requesting help in identifying people involved in the arson.

Story posted by Don Fraser in The Tribune at:  http://www.wellandtribune.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1676400

Niagara Regional Police say the fire — believed to be arson — started in an apartment at 50 St. Paul St., at the rear of Liberty Bicycles.

Emergency officials said 10 people were left homeless. There were no injuries.

The blaze engulfed apartments in both the upper and lower units surrounding the bike store at 40 St. Paul St., and spread to the adjacent Out of the Past clothing store.

The main building at 48-50 St. Paul, including Out of the Past, is “totally destroyed,” said chief fire prevention officer Jim Waycik. Liberty Bicycles also suffered fire and extensive water and smoke damage.

He estimates total damage to be at least $500,000.

After an initial investigation, police believe the fire was intentionally set in one of the apartments. The Ontario Fire Marshal’s Office is also on scene.

St. Paul St. between Ontario and Queen Sts. was closed through the day Monday.

“There’s lots of damage because it started in the basement (apartment) and worked its way up through the walls,” Waycik said.

“We understand (the smoke alarms) all were working,” he added. The fate of some cats in the basement, however, is not known.

Bruno Ariganello, owner of 48-50 St. Paul St., said he has been told the building is a “writeoff.”

“It’s a shock,” Ariganello said. “I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw it. It was like something out of a movie, it was insane. Fortunately, no one got hurt, that’s the important thing.’

Please see full story by Don Fraser in The Tribune at : 

It's Grace TV under pressure. With only 15 minutes until cameras roll, the downtown St. Catharines TV studio is humming.

Technicians and floor crew make last-minute adjustments, as the pace quickens and voices tighten.

Megen Thurber, a show producer, dabs makeup on Peter Youngren and his Calgary guest, pastor Anthony Greco.

"When you suddenly have to make changes, it's very frantic," Thurber said. "It could be the format of the program, changing graphics or different video clips.

"Once the cameras start rolling, there's nothing you can do, so you have to be sure everything is perfect."

The talkshow Encounter will be filmed and edited on the spot -- or "live to tape" -- and broadcast later that day.

The men in the spotlight look relaxed before launching a lively discussion about faith.

Behind them is a mock backdrop of a big city skyline.

Youngren banters with a camera operator who insists he'll never be heard singing on TV, no matter what Youngren wants.

* * *

Last month, Youngren's nonprofit World Impact Ministries took over The Christian Channel, which is being rebranded Grace TV.

Youngren started World Impact in 1976 as a ministry that focuses on international Christian evangelical work.

It was based at Niagara Celebration Church on Scott Street, formerly the Word of Life Church, which he also founded.

For 15 years, World Impact produced TV programs airing on channels like VisionTV and The Christian Channel and on U. S. channels.

It bought the former Royal Bank building at St. Paul and Queen street this year. After extensive renovations, taping for its new national digital channel started two weeks ago.

World Impact is now in the big leagues of 24-hour specialty TV broadcasting. On Cogeco, it's found on channel 186 and on Star Choice / Star Direct, channel 399.

Please see full story from Don Fraser posted in the Niagara Falls Review at:  

http://www.niagarafallsreview.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1672423

Two men have been charged in relation to a pair of break and enters in downtown St. Catharines — including the Niagara IceDogs hockey team office.

In the early morning hours Wednesday, Niagara Regional Police responded to two separate break and enters.

Police first attended the IceDogs business office at 39 Queen St. where they learned a quantity of cash and laptop computers had been stolen. About $500 in damage was caused.

Police were soon after called to a break and enter at the Pow Wow Restaurant on St. Paul St., where $300 in cash was stolen and some $500 damage caused.

$300 in currency and cause approximately $500 in damage.

Each charged with three counts of break and enter and one count of breach of probation are Roger Denomme, 33, and Alan Mustard, 18, both of St. Catharines.

Posted from The Welland Tribune Article ID# 1671447

The City of St. Catharines is bumping up its support of the Niagara Grape and Wine Festival to guarantee it continues as the city's signature homecoming bash, says Coun. Peter Secord, the city's delegate to the festival board.

At a closed-door session of last week's city council meeting, councillors agreed to guarantee a $100,000 line of credit for the festival to use as a cash-flow cushion, Secord said.

...

The line of credit is something that the festival should have had many years ago, Secord said, because its revenue stream is so seasonal "and you need a way to absorb the ups and downs. You can't run a business if you don't get money in every day."

The loan guarantee comes on top of the $50,000 grant the city gives the festival every year, and the roughly $25,000 to $30,000 in waived fees and cleanup costs, for the use of Montebello Park and for the barricading and sweeping of downtown city streets for the festival's two parades -- The Pied Piper Parade and the Grand Parade.

Also new this year is the city's decision to appoint its tourism and attractions manager, Kimberly Hundertmark, to leave her job at city hall to work for the festival from July to October as its new director of events.

With the city continuing to cover Hundertmark's salary and benefits, the secondment is worth about $25,000 a year, said city administrator Colin Briggs.

The festival is not in trouble, Secord said, but it will be changing.

...

Hundertmark, who joins former festival president Ken Weir, who is now the festival's director of sponsorship and government relations, said there will be some changes at this year's fall bash, designed to "make things more accessible for the consumer."

The price of tokens, which are used to pay for food and wine at the events in Montebello Park, will be increasing, Secord said, from $2.50 per token to $3 "and the increase will stay with us."

Secord said the revenue will help pay rising costs, for things such as insurance and security.

Hundertmark said to avoid lineups at the festival, there will be more places to purchase tokens, including participating hotels, wineries, the downtown association and the festival office.

The tokens will also be available in advance.

Hundertmark said if the festival succeeds in getting a $200,000 Marquee Festival Grant from Industry Canada, the Friday night launch of the festival will feature "someone in the top 10" in the Canadian entertainment industry, but concert-goers will have to buy a $10 ticket in advance or pay $15 at the gate.

The Grand Parade will also be tweaked this year, with an Olympic spirit theme and "more bands," she said, "reacting to what the community said they wanted."

Secord said if all goes well, the festival will actually make more money this year, despite the economy's troubles.

Please see full story in The Welland Tribune by M. Bergsma at:

Erroll Kerim, a well-known downtown St. Catharines merchant, is being remembered for his kind and gregarious nature.

Kerim, owner of Erroll’s Shoe and Luggage Repair on St. Paul Street, died Sunday of heart failure at St. Catharines General Hospital after collapsing outside his home in St. Catharines.

He was 69.

“I remember his charm and he just loved people,” said his son Orhan who worked with his father at the shop.

“As he could speak seven languages fluently, he was able to connect with everybody.”

His son Erkan described him as a real communicator.

“He made you feel comfortable and acted like he knew you forever.”

As a youth living in Prestina, Kosovo (then Yugoslavia), Kerim learned the trade of master shoemaker.

In 1960, Kerim, an ethnic Albanian, came to Toronto where he worked as a shoe repairman and shoe seller.

By 1972, he had moved to Niagara and worked for a time in the steel industry while working part-time managing a shoe repair shop at the Pen Centre.

Seven years later, he bought the business and his wife Mira and their children and began working there.

In 1994, Erroll’s Shoe Clinic, as it was named then, moved to the downtown.

Mira and Orhan are the only family members still involved with the business.

“He was organized and didn’t want to be known as a typical shoe-repair person,” said Orhan.

“He always wanted to provide an environment for customers that have high-end shoes where they’d feel comfortable with him (working on) their shoes,” he said.

“He was a worldly man who gave me words of wisdom that will be with me forever in my life,” he said.

“He used to say whatever will be will be. You cannot change it, don’t beat yourself up,” Orhan recalled with emotion.

Orhan said Erroll’s store is temporarily closed. Its future hasn’t been decided.

Tisha Polocko, general manager of the St. Catharines Downtown Association, called Kerim a wonderful man.

“It’s a great business, an asset to the downtown. He’ll definitely be missed by everybody,” she said.

Kerim is survived by his wife Mira, and his children Orhan, Erkan, Lou and Sally.

The family is receiving friends today from 2 to 4 p.m. and 7 to 9 p.m. at Butler Funeral Home in St. Catharines.

His funeral is Friday at 11 a.m. at the Butler chapel.

Posted in the St. Catharines Standard - by Don Fraser : July 22

The Niagara wine route could wind its way through downtown St. Catharines as soon as spring 2011.

City officials made a formal pitch on Tuesday to persuade the Wine Council of Ontario to add St. Paul Street to its Wine Route Map, a guide for thousands of tourists who visit Niagara wine country every year.

“There’s good merit and there’s justification to add downtown St. Catharines to the existing wine route,” said St. Catharines Mayor Brian McMullan, who made the pitch with city staff to the wine council’s tourism committee.

“That’s exactly why we appeared before them to bring them up to date and to make that request formally.”

Bringing wine tourist traffic to the Garden City’s core has been on the agenda of city council for years, but has been held up by concerns about the deteriorating state of downtown.

But in recent months, a tide of promised and real change has come to the core, from a future performing arts complex to a new Carlisle Street parking garage to the completion of the first phase of two-way traffic conversion.

McMullan said he hopes the changes are enough to attract the wine route.

More than a line on a map, the wine route could bring about 155,000 additional cars a year to downtown shops and restaurants, McMullan said.

Please see full story by M. Beech in the St. Catharines Standard at:

For 15 years, World Impact has produced TV programs airing on channels like VisionTV and The Christian Channel and on U. S. channels.

World Impact purchased the former Royal Bank building at St. Paul and Queen streets this year. After extensive renovations, taping for its new national digital channel started two weeks ago.

World Impact is now in the big leagues of 24-hour specialty TV broadcasting. On Cogeco, it's found on channel 186 and on Star Choice/Star Direct, channel 399.

Nathan Thurber, World Impact's business administrator and Megen's husband, said the former bank centre was perfect for Grace TV's new studio.

A proper site was badly needed, because its old space at the Scott Street church was a tight squeeze.

"The ceilings are high here, so it was a natural," Thurber said. "We obviously had to put in the lighting grids, flooring and build the set.

"But as far as the room itself, it was perfect. Eventually, we're going to have several different sets here with different backdrops."

Other programs will include religious features, on-the-street interviews and shows by other producers.

World Impact moved its offices from the church into the St. Paul Street building this week. Up to 80 people could be working at the site in two to three years.

Jack Wallace, chairman of the St. Catharines Downtown Association, said the new station is "fantastic" and that adding workers in the core will be a boon to businesses.

"Anything that can showcase our downtown to bring residents and tourists downtown is really a good thing," Wallace said.

"We're also pleased they've taken over that high-profile building."

Specialty channels like Grace TV are another example of breathtaking changes in the media and entertainment world.

Please see full story in The St. Catharines Standard at:

http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1662630

One of the Garden City's busiest festival days of the summer started with a thunderstorm that sent visitors running for cover.

The violent downpour Saturday briefly hid hundreds of classic cars lined up on St. Paul Street from view and sent Fiddle Fest musicians scurrying into the Silver Spire United Church.

...

But 30 minutes after the storm hit, the sun came back -- and so did thousands of tourists, said Elizabeth Fritshaw of the downtown association. "It poured, then it stopped, and people poured into the street," said Fritshaw, an organizer of the annual downtown classic car show.

"Given the forecast and that rain, we're so pleased with the turnout. I think the merchants are happy, too."

More than 350 classic cars were on display along St. Paul Street, Queen Street and James Street, she said.

A packed crowd also gathered on Queen Street to watch the low-rider hop off -- a competition of classic cars souped up with special hydraulics that allows them to bounce more than a metre off the ground.

Kitchener resident Jeff Hagen's 1963 Impala won the competition with a 50-inch hop that earned whoops and screams from an overflowing crowd squashed into the closed-off street.

A short walk away, Fiddle Fest attracted hundreds of spectators, said organizer Anne Deyme.

More than 70 fiddlers, dancers and other musicians strummed up a storm after the morning weather passed.

Deyme said musicians needed refuge from the rain for only about 20 minutes before taking the party back outside.

Please see full story by MATTHEW VAN DONGEN in the St. Catharines Standard at: 

  http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1653456

Brock University has begun the slow process of preparing the old Canada Hair Cloth building for its transformation into a school of fine and performing arts.

However, just because the university is now leasing the downtown St. Catharines building, don’t expect any dramatic changes immediately.

University staff have begun inspecting the building to assess its condition, and Brock security is policing the building, said Rosemary Hale, dean of humanities.

“We’ll be securing all of the windows and we have security monitoring the building,” she said.

The City of St. Catharines expropriated the St. Paul Street building from owner Jim Macfarlane on June 30, although the price the city will pay for it is still being worked out.

After the city took possession, it leased the building to the university, Hale said.

“This is a step in the process,” Hale said Thursday. “There is a long way to go yet.”

The school will be part of an arts complex, costing more than $100 million, that will also include a municipal performing arts centre.

Story reprinted from The St. Catharines Standard by Grant LaFleche.

Even after four years of planning for two-way traffic downtown, driving westbound on St. Paul Street early Monday morning felt strange to St. Catharines transportation services manager Kris Jacobson.

For the last 55 years, motorists have been funnelled along the main downtown street in one direction -- east.

After 12 hours of drawing new yellow centre lines and changing signs Sunday night and early Monday, parts of St. Paul and King streets became two-way again.

"It's somewhat surreal," Jacobson said of driving "the wrong way" down St. Paul Street between Court and Ontario streets.

"You almost feel like you're doing something wrong. It just doesn't quite feel right. Once you do it 50 times, which I think I have, you get used to it."

Strangeness aside, Jacobson said things went smoothly Monday morning. Drivers were taking their time, and obeying the signs, he said.

A few parked cars, left overnight, ended up facing the wrong way on the street by morning.

Some confused motorists ended up driving in the wrong lane without incident.

New all-way stops signs on St. Paul Street, which replaced traffic lights at the corners of James and Queen streets, cause confusion Monday.

St. Catharines fire department Capt. Joel Chatterton said several drivers came to a rolling stop or went through the stop signs.

Still, there were no traffic accidents downtown Monday, according to Niagara Regional Police.

Please see full story in The St. Catharines Standard at:

“There’s probably going to be a couple of fender-benders and close calls,” Hodgins said, adding he’s in favour of the change and thinks it could help his food and parking lot business.

“The (Niagara Regional Police) are going to be busy. There’s my thoughts.”

City of St. Catharines transportation services manager Kris Jacobson said he expects the changeover to be relatively smooth.

The city will be providing as much information about the conversion as possible to drivers, and it will be up to them to be alert and follow the new rules of the road, Jacobson said.

“That’s all we can really do,” he said.

“We give them the pavement markings. We give them the signs. We give them signals. It’s up to them to drive accordingly. They’re the ones who will really make or break how smoothly this goes.”

Still, city staff will be monitoring both streets for weeks afterward and listening to driver feedback to see if any improvements need to be made, he said.

“This is not the end of the plan. This is simply the beginning, and we will fine-tune it as we move forward.”

Please see full story in The St. Catharines Standard at:

The federal and provincial governments chipped in $9.3 million each to replace the crumbling car park. The city will contribute the balance of funding.

Replacing the multi-level garage, held up in some parts by shoring towers, is another piece in the downtown revitalization puzzle that is coming together quickly for the city.

"This is really giving the community a lot of encouragement and giving people reason to believe the future is bright downtown and in St. Catharines as a whole," Mayor Brian McMullan said at a podium with three sledgehammers leaning against it.

Details of what the new garage will look like aren't known, but McMullan bandied about some ideas after the news conference at the foot of the garage's Garden Street staircase.

...

Whatever the final incarnation, demolition of the 33-year-old parking garage will begin no later than October, he said

Kris Jacobson, the city's transportation services manager, said that job will cost about $1.2 million and be covered by the city's parking fund.

Construction of the new garage must be "substantially completed" by March 2011, he said.

Please see full story in The St. Catharines Standard by T. Mayer at:

For years, if not decades, downtown St. Catharines has struggled to find its footing. The once bustling core of Niagara's largest urban centre followed the trend of urban centres across North America as it was hollowed out by retailers moving into malls and strip plazas and the building of commercial and business parks on spacious lands well beyond the reach of downtown.

Over the years, successive city councils requested staff and consultant's reports to create plans to revitalize the downtown. Each time, small steps were taken -- but the transformative steps never materialized or the plan was simply too grand for the council of the day.

That was until Friday.

In the shadows of the Canada Hair Cloth Building in the lower level parking in downtown St. Catharines, Ontario's Minister of Transportation and St. Catharines MPP Jim Bradley, St. Catharines MP Rick Dykstra and St. Catharines Mayor Brian McMullan jointly announced the funding of a $54- million, state-of-the-art Niagara Centre for the Arts and Recital Hall for downtown St. Catharines.

This announcement, combined with the already announced relocation of Brock University's Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts, which is slated to move into the historic Canada Hair Cloth Building, is the transformative step that has been so elusive for St. Catharines.

Please see full story by Walter Sendzik in The St. Catharines Standard at:

www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx

Mr. Rick Dykstra, the Member of Parliament for St. Catharines, and Jim Bradley, MPP for St. Catharines, are pleased to announce that the City of St. Catharines will soon break ground on a new Centre for the Arts and Recital Hall, thanks to a joint investment by the governments of Canada and Ontario.

This project will have a significant economic impact for the Niagara region and surrounding area. It will help create jobs, attract skilled workers and generate more visitors to the town.

"Under the leadership of the Prime Minister, our Government is investing in a complex that will create jobs, revitalize downtown St. Catharines and promote Niagara's diverse arts community," said Mr. Dykstra. "A new Centre for the Arts and Recital Hall in our region is a welcomed venue that will place St. Catharines squarely on the cultural landscape. This is a concrete example of how we are supporting the arts and creating opportunity for students and adults alike."

"Under the leadership of Premier Dalton McGuinty, our government believes that investing in cultural infrastructure is a great way to create jobs, build stronger communities and forge the creative workforce of tomorrow," said Mr. Bradley. "The Niagara Centre for the Arts and the Recital Hall will be a significant cultural attraction in the Niagara region and the government of Ontario is pleased to be investing with the city and the government of Canada in this exciting project."

"The new Centre for the Arts project will provide the necessary catalyst for a full-scale transformation of Downtown St. Catharines, which has been identified as an Urban Growth Centre," said St. Catharines Mayor Brian McMullan. "Building on the support of the Federal and Provincial governments, Downtown St. Catharines will be able to position itself as a diverse location for cultural pursuits and new business investment."

Please see full press release at Marketwire:

Re: Two-way traffic is a misguided idea(May 16).

I'm fully in support of instituting two-way traffic in downtown St. Catharines and have to disagree with Ian Gollert that two-way traffic is a "colossal waste of resources."

Everything I know about urban culture suggests that a vibrant city requires a pedestrian-friendly and dense core. Downtowns are not just places for consumption.

They are places for buying and selling, but also places for living, walking, people-watching and exchanging greetings, arts and ideas.

They ought to be friendly to the young, the middle-aged and the old, and they ought to bring together people from varying income brackets and cultures. If "time is at a premium" for people who need to shop, there are places to do that (the big box stores and shopping malls). A good downtown is a civic culture, as well as a commercial one.

Leah Bradshaw, department of political science, Brock University

St. Catharines

As part of their efforts to remove barriers, St. Catharines city councillors this week approved the creation of accessible parking spots in the downtown core and in downtown Port Dalhousie.

Drivers with a valid handicapped parking permit are already allowed to park for free at any city parking meter, a report from city engineer Paul Mustard said.

That's why the city should create special spots in strategic locations that are designated for handicapped persons' vehicles. The spots must be easy to navigate in and out, and the spots must have modifications to the curb to allow for barrier-free access to the vehicle, the report noted.

And just in case other drivers are tempted to snag the prime parking spots, councillors approved hefty fines for violators.

Normally, an expired meter earns the illegal parker a $9 fine, but parking in an accessible spot without a valid permit will be much more expensive.

The fine will be $300.

Please see full story in The St. Catharines Standard at:

http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1565880

It may be true that the City of St. Catharines is paying more than its fair share of policing costs, but police Chief Wendy Southall said the funding formula is not her concern.

Speaking at St. Catharines’ city council meeting Monday night, Southall said she deploys police officers equally across Niagara based on the staffing levels required by the contract with the police association, and based on the safety of the public and of police officers.

“We are not responsible for how tax rates are divided up,” Southall told St. Patrick’s Coun. Mark Elliott, who had suggested that since St. Catharines property taxpayers contribute one-third of the police budget, they should get one-third of the policing in the special enforcement unit.

Southall had been asked to come to the city council meeting by McMullan after St. Andrew’s Coun. Andrew Gill said in April that it’s not fair that three St. Catharines neighbourhoods are forced to pay extra money for police protection.

Downtown, Port Dalhousie and south St. Catharines near Brock University are paying a combined total of $170,000 a year in addition to the regular property taxes in order to have special-duty constables available to deal with rowdiness in these trouble spots.

But Scott said the partnerships between the city, the police and various business owners are actually working well, and the extra patrols in Port Dalhousie even won an award from the Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police for community mobilization.

“It’s something we should be proud of,” Scott said.

Please see full story The St. Catharines Standard at: http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1563191

Those foraging for their next meal at the St. Catharines Farmers’ Market had a new sound to enjoy on a busy market day Saturday morning.

So did library-goers, those out for a stroll down James Street or taking in the action on just about every major artery downtown, thanks to Buskerfest, which featured students from a handful of local high schools jamming for downtown-goers’ pleasure Saturday morning.

Buskerfest is the brainchild of St. Catharines Collegiate music teacher Toby Ley, who spent the past couple of years mulling how to make it a reality.

When he got a call from the St. Catharines Public Library asking for the jazz band to perform this weekend, Ley realized it was also the chance to finally pilot a high school buskerfest.

Ley said he’s been contacted by the St. Catharines Downtown Association about having students busk at other events. He hopes to expand Buskerfest’s offerings next year, including jugglers and the talents of drama students. Having students busking for a charity is also a possibility.

Given and crew see Buskerfest having the potential of a less structured, acoustic S.C.E.N.E. Music Festival.

Whatever its future incarnation, there’s room for more street performers in St. Catharines, Ley said.

Please see full story by T. Mayer in The St. Catharines Standard at:

Susan Parker's dragon has been happily overtaking pawns and castles in its board game for a couple of years, but it's all fired up for a new challenge.

Her St. Catharines company's board game Dragon Chess is making the leap to video games with the help of nGen.

"The interactive version would help promote the board game and vice versa," said Parker, who with husband Lex Parker head up game development company Dragonchess Inc. in St. Catharines.

Their company has collaborated with two Brock University graduates to form newly incorporated Dragonchess Interactive Inc.

The interactive business is one of two companies that has recently joined nGen, Niagara's Interactive Media Generator, at its offices at One St. Paul Street.

The other company, Morro Images Inc. is a visual effects and 3D computer animation company, which already has an established company in Germany.

Parker said Dragonchess Inc. had been looking to expand its concept.

"The board game is great and there's increased awareness and interest in playing board games, but there's also that market that's only interested in interactive games," Parker said. "So we've got two ends of the spectrum as far as gaming goes."

They approached media incubator nGen last summer about the possibility of turning Dragon Chess into a video game.

Dragon Chess is a variation of traditional chess that uses an extra piece -- the Dragon -- and has extra squares on the board. The Dragon piece can move up to three squares unimpeded and is second most powerful.

Bachynski said Dragonchess Interactive Inc. is developing a prototype with features not available with the board game. He expects it will be released early next year.

Please see full story by Karina Walter in The St. Catharines Standard at:

The old factory, stripped bare for more than a year, has a number of long, open sections with concrete floors.

Macfarlane quickly discovered the setting was perfect for whacking tennis balls. So, he frequently drops in at his old digs to practise his stroke.

He's even drawn a line on a back wall that's the height of a tennis net.

But the practice sessions end June 30.

After that, the City of St. Catharines takes over.

The city announced its intention to expropriate the property last summer after it couldn't negotiate a deal with Macfarlane. The land and building had been identified as the prime spot for a proposed city/Brock University fine and performing arts complex.

While Macfarlane isn't necessarily against the project, he maintained the city was low-balling him with a $1-million offer.

He asked for a "hearing of necessity," and the provincially appointed chair agreed last fall with his contention that the city was moving prematurely on the expropriation. The chair's ruling wasn't binding on the city, however, and council voted shortly thereafter to proceed with the land grab.

Macfarlane received official notification early last month of the city's plan to take possession at the end of June. (Agreement on price between the two parties has yet to be reached.)

Please see full story by D.Herod in The St. Catharines Standard at:

The Region's waste experts are tweaking a proposed plan for downtown St. Catharines after concerns by restaurant owners about fewer garbage pick ups.

The plan, to take effect June 1, will cut back garbage collection downtown from seven days to four and remove all 52 dumpsters in the core.

On the flipside it will collect more recycling weekly and add 20 cardboard-only bins to the area. It's also launching a pilot project for organics.

The eight-month pilot project will allow restaurants, flower shops and other businesses to use a locked organics bin in the city-owned Garden Park parking lot.

St. Patrick's Coun. Mark Elliott said 80 per cent of waste in many of the downtown dumpster bins is corrugated cardboard. That will now be put in the cardboard bins, reducing the amount of garbage requiring pick up.

The Region used to collect recyclable containers and fibres on alternating weeks, but will now collect both blue and grey boxes every week.

Elliott said St. Catharines is currently the only community in Ontario that has garbage pick up every night downtown and the service is being subsidized by all taxpayers.

The changes will mean a yearly cost savings to the city of $100,000.

Please see full story by K. Walters in The St. Catharines Standard at:

http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1548985

Beginning May 1 and on the first Friday of every month, downtown St. Catharines will transform into Art City.

From 6 to 9 p. m. until Oct. 2, downtown galleries, restaurants and merchants will host a Friday exhibition or performance on their premises, through a partnership between the Niagara Artists' Centre, the St. Catharines and Area Arts Council and the St. Catharines Downtown Association.

On May 1, the St. Catharines and Area Arts Council, at 31 James St., will host a 16mm film installation by emerging contemporary visual artist Ryan Rivando.

On the same evening, NAC, at 354 St. Paul St., will open two exhibitions. The first, Manifesto, is a group exhibition in the Dennis Tourbin Members' Gallery that celebrates International Workers' Day. NAC's storefront space will feature Maggie Groat's video installation, entitled Displacement (How to cope with the weight of history).

The St. Catharines Downtown Association will present artist Laurie Boese, who will create sidewalk chalk murals each Art City evening at 136 St. Paul St.

Other participating galleries and businesses include The Boot Shop, Cram Gallery, Elliott & Co., Fine Grind Cafe, Golden Horseshoe Tattoo, Hollywood Hair, Pan Cafe, The Red Hot Chili Pepper, Strega Cafe and more.

Published in The St. Catharines Standard (April 28, 2009)

For complete venue and artist listing please click here.

St. Catharines councillors want answers about why the city and businesses pay tens of thousands of dollars per year to beef up police presence in known trouble spots, such as downtown and Port Dalhousie’s bar area.

Councillors voted unanimously Monday night to request Niagara Regional Police Chief Wendy Southall to provide an explanation at an upcoming council meeting.

“I was just surprised to see it raised, I guess, in an aggressive manner,” Southall told members of the police services board at a meeting Thursday morning.

Southall is slated to appear before council May 11, along with Deputy Chief Joe Matthews and other members of police brass.

The dollars-for-extra-protection issue came up after the St. Catharines Downtown Association made a presentation to council, noting calls for police service in the core had dropped significantly since additional officers began patrolling the area.

Downtown merchants in the association and the city pay approximately $57,000 a year for special duty police officers to patrol downtown streets on foot.

A similar arrangement is in place in Port Dalhousie where bar owners have shelled out roughly $25,000 for extra policing on weekends between the May long weekend and Labour Day for each of the past two years.

Niagara Regional Police absorbed an equal share of the cost for putting extra officers on duty to curb unruly behaviour from bar patrons.

Please see full story by P. Downs in The St. Catharines Standard at:

The City of St. Catharines is stalling on its plan to restrict new bars downtown, after both the chamber of commerce and the downtown association said it’s a bad idea.

Instead, the city is forming a new committee to find other solutions to the problems caused by bar patrons.

A $40,000 study commissioned by the city recommended a restriction on new bars in the downtown core, but councillors decided Monday not to implement the consultant’s suggestions.

“The proposed changes are seen as undue control over what should be a free market environment for entrepreneurs,” said Jack Wallace, chairman of the St. Catharines Downtown Association, who criticized the consultant’s findings as being outdated and inaccurate.

The St. Catharines-Thorold Chamber of Commerce was equally critical of The Planning Partnership’s report, saying its recommendations were too heavily based on a Toronto situation.

The consultant’s advice — to only allow new entertainment clubs or nightclubs in an area bounded by King, Ontario, St. Paul and Garden Park, to limit their size to 350 square metres and to require them to be at least 75 metres apart — places too many restrictions on downtown property owners, Wallace said. They need to be able to sell or lease their properties to viable business operators, he said.

Wallace said creating an entertainment district is a good idea, but law-abiding business owners should not be restricted in where they operate. Instead, the city should encourage them to pay attention to appearance and signage.

Wallace also found fault with the accuracy of the consultant’s findings.

Wallace said The Planning Partnership reported there are 60 licensed establishments with a capacity of 11,000 patrons downtown, when actually there are only 46 establishments with a combined capacity of 8,900. The study failed to analyze the types of licensed establishments, and “lumped all businesses together,” Wallace said, and there was no evidence of the consultants actually talking to business or property owners.

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• Council rethinks ban on new bars

The downtown association is also willing to consider re-establishing the Brock booze bus if the problems of safety and insurance can be solved, Wallace said.

St. Patrick’s Coun. Heather Foss said a decision on the proposed zoning changes should be deferred for nine months. In the meantime, the city should establish a sub-committee of the Downtown Development and Revitalization Committee, and call it the Downtown Licensed Establishment Committee.

The committee should make its recommendations to council in nine months, Foss said, taking into account the measures that are already in place to control rowdiness and making sure that all stakeholders have input.

The new Downtown Licensed Establishment Committee should consist of representatives from:

• bar and restaurant owners

• city councillors

• other downtown businesses

• police

• St. Catharines Transit

• Brock University Student Union

• bylaw enforcement and engineering staff

• the fire department

• the economic development department

• the city clerk’s department

Please see full story in The St. Catharines Standard at:

http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1512714

At last week's city council meeting, councillors accepted the advice of city planner Paul Chapman and agreed to begin the process of banning street-level living on the city's main commercial streets: St. Paul, King, Queen, Ontario, James and Church.

The other downtown streets that currently have a mix of residential and commercial will be reviewed to decide their fate, wrote Chapman in a report to council.

St. Patrick's councillor and downtown merchant Mark Elliott agreed the trend must be stopped.

"I don't think there's a faster way of becoming a ghetto than to have residential in retail stores, especially when they (the windows) are draped over and papered over," Elliott said.

"It breaks up the continuity of the street," Chapman said, and makes the viability of adjacent commercial uses "more difficult -- having a blank front that offers no interest or activity."

There are already half a dozen storefronts along St. Paul Street that have been converted to residential. Buildings at 66, 76 146 and 360 have clear evidence of human habitation.

Chapman said it's understandable that landlords succumb to the temptation to convert empty retail space to residential space, when it's so hard to find commercial tenants.

Now that councillors have agreed to enforce the core's commercial character, city planning staff will draft a proposed bylaw. It will be the subject of public discussion and a formal public meeting before it is finally passed.

Chapman said that could all happen as early as this summer.

Please see full story in St. Catharines Standard by Marlene Bergsma at:

Niagara Region and the City of St. Catharines are set to test an organics recycling project downtown, and The Watering Can flower market is eager to be one of the early participants.

“I definitely see this as something that we want to be involved in,” store front manager Caroline Dodd said. “I would see that as very beneficial.”

All of the leaves, stems and other waste material from the shop’s bouquets and other floral items “we throw in the Dumpster,” Dodd said. “We’ve never had an opportunity for organics before.”

That’s why St. Patrick’s Coun. Mark Elliott said it’s time to introduce composting to the core.

“We want to see if we can do it effectively and efficiently,” said Elliott, who is among the downtown merchants who want to be able to recycle.

Currently, all waste generated downtown is sent to the landfill, whether it’s compostable or recyclable or not.

“It’s an enormous amount of waste,” Elliott said.

He said the Downtown Association is pressing for change, especially because the waste generated by shops like The Watering Can and the many downtown restaurants could be composted.

At last week’s city council meeting, councillors agreed to remove all 52 of the city’s downtown garbage Dumpsters and replace them with 20 cardboard-only containers, introducing cardboard recycling to the core.

Elliott said the next step is to test organics recycling, in the hope of eventually extending it to all downtown merchants and residents.

He said the pilot project will likely feature a locked organics bin located in the city-owned Garden Park parking lot, with the first participants being given keys to use it.

The bin will be locked to prevent contamination, Elliott said, because too many people would be tempted to drop non-compostable items in the bin, especially because there will soon be no more public-access Dumpsters downtown.

Please see full story by Marlene Bergsma in the St. Catharines Standard at:

http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1511437

GO Transit is coming to Niagara, including two possible locations in Niagara Falls.

St. Catharines MPP Jim Bradley and St. Catharines MP Rick Dykstra announced Sunday $2.5 million in federal and provincial infrastructure funding to build four new park and ride GO bus stations in Niagara.

Construction on the first station at Casablanca Boulevard and the QEW in Grimsby will start in June, with service to St. Catharines and possibly two locations in Niagara Falls by September.

Story by Marlene Bergsma in the St. Catharines Standard at:

The city offered up an Expression of Interest document a few weeks ago to private-sector companies in the arena-building business. The submissions deadline was last Friday.

The idea was to see if any firm was willing to finance, build and manage a 5,000-seat rink in downtown St.

Catharines on their own dime.

In the past, bidding on such a proposal might have had all the attraction of buying swamp land in Florida.

But the arrival and box-office success of the IceDogs have presumably made the private-sector arena concept a little more intriguing.

That was borne out by the results of the city's recent fishing expedition.

Of the dozen companies who picked up the Expression's document, five took the bait.

"We're very pleased with the response," said Mayor Brian McMullan, suggesting it indicates there's some "genuine interest" out there.

While not required to do so, there were some cost numbers for the facility bandied about in the submissions.

"They were in that $40 million to $50 million range, which is kind of what we had guess-timated it would be," said McMullan.

In tip-toeing down this path, arena boosters on city council have asserted that no local taxpayer money would be used to fund this project.

This was done in an attempt to assure restless city denizens that council hadn't gone barmy in its minding of the public purse.

After all, it had just agreed in principle to build a zillion-dollar performing arts centre and had earlier given the green light to a new $16-million aquatic centre/library branch.

On the horizon are a new parking garage downtown and a new fire hall in Merritton.

Please see full story by Doug Herod in the St. Catharines Standard at:

Montebello Park has been given a patriotic makeover in red, white — and blue.

The Americanization, complete with the stars and stripes flying from atop the gazebo, is courtesy of Hollywood, planting small-town Minnesota in the city’s core.

The two-hour ABC pilot Happy Town is the first major production to be filmed in St. Catharines in a decade.

But city officials are hoping the show, and the money it brings, will be back.

“It’s exciting because from the sounds of it, it’s a big production, and if it does in fact get picked up, there are some opportunities to have smaller shoots in the future,” said David Oakes, the city’s director of economic development.

“That would be one of the benefits to it, if we could get Montebello Park in a major series.”

Happy Town is about a community grappling with its first crime in seven years and the new sheriff on the case.

Montebello Park is being transformed for the fictional town’s spring carnival Thawfest.

By Monday afternoon, a Ferris wheel was spinning in the park, and carousel animals were being polished. Numerous game booths with stuffed toy prizes were being set up with bright-striped canvas awnings.

Workers were installing extra lights inside the pavilion with round paper lanterns hanging down. Pleated fan bunting was draped along the railings.

The show is paying the city $7,280 to rent the park, but the economic development department estimates it will pump $304,875 into the local economy.

Please see full story by Karina Walter in The St. Catharines Standard at:

The news is taxing James Bennett’s cheerful demeanour.

A move by the province to a 13 per cent harmonized federal and provincial sales tax could mean a spike in the price of a coffee and a muffin at The Bean On Queen.

“I’m not happy about this at all,” Bennett said inside his tiny downtown St. Catharines coffee shop.

“It’s not just the price of what customers are buying that’ll go up, it’s the price of the food products I pick up,” he said. “I’m probably going to have to pass that extra tax on.”

As of July 1, 2010, the combined tax adds eight per cent to the federal five per cent goods and services tax on many things once exempt from provincial tax. Prepared food under $4, gasoline and stamps are all included.

In Thursday’s budget, the government also announced $4.5 billion in tax relief for businesses over the next three years. And families earning less than $160,000 will receive a $1,000 rebate from Queen’s Park.

A harmonized tax was touted by the government as a means to reduce the administration costs and keep Ontario businesses competitive.

Bennett was unimpressed.

“Yeah, it’ll save administration costs for large corporations, not the smaller mom-and-pop stores,” he said.

The St. Catharines-Thorold Chamber of Commerce lauded cuts in corporate income taxes, but remained cautious about the new sales tax, noting some sectors will suffer.

“We can only hope that the government will continue to consult with business as it prepares to implement the harmonized tax in July of 2010,” the chamber said in a news release Friday.

Please see full article in the St. Catharines Standard at:

http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1499464

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• Construction delays will be worth it

As far as the downtown project is concerned, there is a much-anticipated end result: two-way traffic.

Acknowledging that support for the idea is far from universal, the conversion to two-way traffic is a key component of the revitalization of downtown St. Catharines.

Many downtown merchants welcome the transition with the hope it will make downtown more people (and shopper) friendly.

It will also be used to help encourage the Wine Council of Ontario to bring the wine route through the city's core, and that means more tourists and

enhanced business opportunities. For the next little while, this

construction will be a pain. But the end result of this summer of inconvenience will be worth it.

Please see full article in the St. Catharines Standard by -- Kalvin Reid at: 

St. Catharines is asking more residents to fight climate change during Earth Hour -- and all year round.

City council Monday approved plans to dim the lights at municipal buildings between 8:30 and 9:30 p. m. Saturday as part of the global energy-saving event.

St. Catharines joined the symbolic campaign last year, but energy use during the no-power hour dropped only two per cent.

"We didn't have all that good a showing last year, but we're hoping for better this time around," said Coun. Mark Elliott. "We need to take part as much as we can and challenge the communities around us."

Earth Hour began as an Australian event in 2007. It now includes more than a 1,000 cities worldwide that are expected to switch off the lights Saturday.

The collective powering down is meant to demonstrate the power of many individuals acting together against global warming.

The city should emphasize Earth Hour is only the beginning, Bruce Williamson said.

The Port Dalhousie councillor called the event "a great symbolic act," but said he hoped residents are committed to curbing energy consumption "for the other 364 days of the year."

The city will pursue that goal through a special partnership with the World Wildlife Fund, city engineer Paul Mustard said.

Mustard said St. Catharines is one of five municipalities working with the environmental group on a pilot educational project on climate change.

The Good Life program encourages residents to commit to specific actions to fight climate change by shrinking their carbon footprint. The city is also co-promoting Earth Hour with both regional school boards and Horizon Utilities, which will measure the hoped-for drop in energy use Saturday.

Please see full story by M. Dongen in the St. Catharines Standard at:

Each weekday around 4 a.m., St. Paul Street resident Maria Sleight wakes up to the sound of bulldozers rumbling to life and ripping into asphalt.

She loves it.

Every early-morning minute construction crews spend digging into the earth to install new sewer and water mains, the better it will be for her clothing store, Verity, which is located on the floor below her apartment.

The sooner work to convert several downtown streets to two-way traffic is complete, the better, Sleight said. The dust, noise and traffic tie-ups that started in early March are keeping away customers, she said.

“To me that means they’ve got five hours before the store opens that they’re working,” Sleight said of her interrupted sleep.

“It’s all about the customers. It’s all about the community right now.”

...

Kurt Gwisdek, owner of Liberty! Bicycles on St. Paul Street, agreed the construction is a drag for business, but said the work is being done quickly and efficiently.

“It’s got to get done,” said Gwisdek, who is happy about the water and sewer main work, but opposes two-way traffic because of the problems it will pose for trucks making big deliveries.

“Is it affecting my business? Yeah. There’s no question about it. Is it worth complaining about it? A lot of people like to complain about just about everything in this town, right? So no.”

James Ip, an inspector with V&S Engineering Ltd., the company contracted by Niagara Region to do the downtown roadwork, said he hasn’t heard too many complaints from business owners.

Motorists, however, were fairly irate the first week work began, said Ip, whose job includes liaising with the public. Most are finding other ways to get around, he said.

“Obviously they’re on their way to work or have important places to be, and we have a job to do and we’re trying to get it done and try not to disrupt as much as possible,” Ip said.

“It is more challenging because it is a high-profile area. It’s tough to please everybody.”

Sleight said she understands the work needs to be done, and is looking forward to more pedestrian-friendly two-way traffic on St. Paul Street.

Until then, it’s going to be tough.

“Coping is a daily strategy for me. I’ve got dust, I’ve got no customers. All I can do is hold on to the fact that it’s going to be a better downtown.”

Denizens of downtown St. Catharines were treated to a murky brown sludge pouring from their taps Wednesday afternoon after road crews broke an underground water main.

St. Catharines city engineer Paul Mustard said crews replacing water and sewage lines under the St. Paul Street and Ontario Street intersection “nicked” the main around 1 p.m., unleashing a flood that filled the hole dug into the street and spilled onto the intersection.

Mustard said city crews quickly shut valves down to redirect water downtown.

“But when you do that, you reverse the flow (and) you stir up sediment and rust in the line and you end up with brown water for the people downtown,” Mustard said. “So obviously, you don’t want to drink that. You can wash your hands and such though.”

Mustard said the brown water is usually cleared by running the taps for a little while.

Please see full story in The St. Catharines Standard at :

“There’s a fantastic sense of a lot of support within the community. The comments and questions were excellent. This level of cooperation will be unparalleled in Canada,” said Mayor Brian McMullan following the conclusion of the first of two public information sessions. Clearly, the joint proposal by Brock University and the City of St. Catharines to revitalize the downtown core through a marvel of creative thinking, expanded teaching, and inventive land/building use has come a long way since last November’s leadership gift of $15 million by Marilyn Walker.During the formal part of the meeting, cultural planner Martin Vinik outlined the progress to date with as much passion and cautious optimism as the interested assemblage who came to learn where things stood. In his mind, the keys to success are Brock’s commitment to relocating and expanding the Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts to the Hair Cloth Building site and the ongoing success of the Centre for the Arts, which, similarly, would abandon the acoustically challenged confines of the Sean O’ Sullivan and David S. Howes Theatres (better suited to their primary purpose as large lecture halls) for a number of specifically–designed performance spaces—notably the 900–seat concert hall that will anchor the now–called Niagara Centre for the Arts (note to wealthy legacy seekers: A naming opportunity is most certainly available).

Please see full story in Pulse Niagara at:

Last week, crews moved in equipment to the corner of Ontario and St. Paul streets and began work on disruptive reconstruction projects.

Between now and May, St. Paul Street will be torn up between Burgoyne Bridge and William Street, as well as on Ontario Street between King and Lake streets.

More than simply providing a shiny new road surface, the work will dramatically change driving habits in the downtown as it is all part of the city's much-heralded two-way traffic conversion, a project city hall has made a high priority in an effort to make the core a more visitor-friendly place.

This year's work is being done in three phases, starting with the aforementioned reconstruction work. That work is being done with the City and will largely take place underground as storm and sanitary sewers and watermains are replaced.

Next will come the conversion phase which will produce the most visible results.

However, this phase involves the least amount of work. St. Catharines transportation services director Kris Jacobson said the conversion of St. Paul and King streets between Ontario Street and Carlisle will take place in either late May or early June.

The most expensive portion of the conversion is the replacement of traffic signals on King Street at James, Queen, William, Ontario and Carlisle. When it is finished, King Street will be the main travel route, with left turning lanes at major intersections.

The windy and narrower St. Paul Street will have one lane in each direction.

While this is being done for space reasons, it is also being done with the deliberate attempt to slow traffic down on St. Paul, to make it less "auto-dominated" and friendlier to pedestrians and cyclists, Jacobson said.

Please see full story by M. Zettle from Niagara This Week at:

The proposed Niagara Centre for the Arts and Brock University’s Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts, are to be built along St. Paul Street at the old Canada Hair Cloth building.

Vinik said Brock University wants to move its arts program from the university to a more accessible location, while the city is interested in downtown revitalization and economic development.

The proposed location for the facilities easily does both, he said.

Moreover, he said, Brock’s art performances do fairly well despite being located on a campus that is not as accessible as a downtown location.

“So moving them downtown is just a plus.”

As well, he said in other cities where an arts centre was built, ancillary business sprung up around it, strengthening the local economy.

Please see full story by G. Lafleche from the St. Catharines Standard at:

http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1462972

Fire Insp. Chris Leonard knew getting a second consecutive people’s choice award wouldn’t be easy. Not this year.

“Look over there,” Leonard said, pointing to a cluster of Niagara Regional Police officers during the third annual downtown chili cook-off Friday. “They’re pretty popular.”

The St. Catharines fire department entry was the popular choice last year, and Leonard was aiming for a repeat. His chili came with an Ontario Fire Marshal’s warning and a fire extinguisher was placed next to the pot to drive the point home.

Seven judges spent the afternoon tasting chili from 16 contestants that included local business associations, schools and restaurants.

The annual event was a fundraiser for Community Care of St. Catharines & Thorold, said Elizabeth Fritshaw of the Downtown Association, the host of the event at Market Square.

Fritshaw said more than $3,000 was raised for the local food bank

Please see full story by G. LaFleche in the St. Catharines Standard at...

St. Catharines Mayor Brian McMullan, chairwoman of the St. Catharines Community Task Force, Kimberly Hundertmark , and the First Nations drumming group Ohniakara introduced the theme of the celebration for the Olympic torch run to hit St. Catharines in December. The theme will be a "Winter Solstice Community Celebration," that will feature the city's First Nations history and local wines.

The torch will arrive in St. Catharines on Dec. 20, and will be in the region for two days, stopping in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Welland and Niagara Falls.

Published in The St. Catharines Standard at:

Karen MacCabe says Niagara's young musicians need a place to play.

That's why MacCabe, a member of the Niagara Youth Orchestra board, joined about 40 other members of the arts community Saturday for a day-long bus trip to other cities' arts centres.

Now that the City of St. Catharines has approved in principle a new performing arts centre downtown, MacCabe wants to make sure that dream becomes a reality.

But she thinks it's important for young musicians, artists and performers to have something to aspire to.

"I truly believe if we have a place for them to play, it will show the kids in St. Catharines there is a stage for them to graduate to," MacCabe said of the possibility that the proposed performing arts centre with its five stages could become home to the youth orchestra.

"If we have the stage, just that physical presence, kids will see the value of arts and culture," MacCabe said.

It would also help cultivate a new generation of music, film and theatre lovers.

Please see full story by M. Bergsma in The St. Catharines Standard at:

http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1426610

St. Patrick’s Coun. Mark Elliott will never forget the day he was taking his dog for a walk early one Sunday morning and came upon a downtown merchant perched on a ladder in the branches of a tree.

The restaurateur was energetically sawing away at the crown of a healthy tree in front of his shop, in an effort to make his sign more visible.

Several years later, the damaged tree was removed by the parks and recreation department.

The death of that tree and the blistering heat of downtown sidewalks on a summer day are behind Elliott’s attempt to have the city take its urban forest more seriously.

At a recent city council meeting, Elliott asked that city staff report back on a plan to boost the tree canopy.

“Trees are the lungs of a city,” Elliott said. They “remove pollutants and carbon from the air, provide cooling effects, reduce energy consumption and allow rain to reach the water table.”

In the summer, downtown streets can be as much as 10 degrees hotter than the suburbs, Elliott said, as idling vehicles and sunbaked pavement cause temperatures to rise. Vehicle emissions make the hot air foul to breathe.

Please see full story in the St. Catharines Standard at:

That St. Catharines city council is working towards creating an "entertainment" district downtown is encouraging news.

But council has to realize its job extends beyond simply drawing a line on the map and dictating what kind of licensed establishments can go where.

At a meeting Monday night, city councillors decreed no new nightclubs can be opened outside of the area bordered by King, St. Paul, Garden Park and Ontario streets.

And even within that area, there must be sufficient space between clubs and the size of the club will be limited to 350 square metres (existing clubs will be grandfathered and exempt from the new restrictions).

The move is in response to a growing number of complaints about after-hours rowdiness in the core and the detrimental effect that could have on attracting new residential development to the struggling downtown.

That is certainly understandable as there are few people who would want a home adjacent to an establishment that will be blaring dance music until the early hours of the morning.

But now that city council has done the deed that will annoy the owners of these bars and clubs, it has to turn its attention to what it can do to make this new entertainment district an attractive venue for downtown patrons.

Please see full story in The St. Catharines Standard at:

When Rosemary Hale walks along St. Paul Street in St. Catharines, she looks up.

The beauty of downtown reveals itself in the intricately etched facades of the street's century-old buildings, she said.

In Hale's view, her adopted city not only has potential to be something great, it already is.

"St. Paul Street is a damn fine, beautiful street," said Hale, Brock University's dean of humanities who oversees 14 departments.

"I've never seen it as dying. It's never appeared that way to me. It isn't all about its potential. There is a lot already there as well."

Hale is determined to tap into the city's cultural fountain and help make it flow.

Since arriving in the Garden City in July 2000, the 65-year-old history professor has made it her mission to encourage others to see how this General Motors town can become a cultural mecca.

There are already many artists and theatre and musical groups in St. Catharines, Hale said, and a proposed joint performing arts complex between Brock and the city will only serve to strengthen the local cultural community.

Not only has Hale spent years pushing alongside local cultural groups for a downtown-based fine and performing arts school, she practises what she preaches outside the walls of academia. She belongs to several cultural organizations in Niagara, including the Regional Cultural Committee.

But it was under her leadership at Brock that the downtown St. Catharines-based Niagara Interactive Media Generator -- a business incubator designed to foster new-media companies -- was born.

Please see full story by M. Beech in the St. Catharines Standard at:

Quite the peace offer made by St. Catharines city council this week.

The "olive branch" extended by the city to the Niagara Regional Police Service was explained thusly by Coun. Andrew Gill:

Do as we say regarding the proposed location of a new police headquarters, and everything will be fine.

Something tells me Gill won't be asked to help out in Middle East negotiations.

Not that the NRP board is likely to win the Nobel Peace Prize anytime soon, either.

Some of its representatives are meeting today with fellow deep thinkers from Niagara Region in a bid to find common ground on the headquarters shmozzle.

As long as the Region agrees to give them everything they want, police officials are confident a deal can be reached.

Sounds perfectly unreasonable, don't you think?

St. Catharines' latest foray into the cop palace quagmire was a byproduct of its grab for federal infrastructure dough.

Replacing the crumbling Carlisle Street parking garage is at the top of the city's priority list. The replacement is also key to the city's attempt at convincing police brass to stay downtown.

The idea is that a new 700-spot parking garage would be constructed on site, with a new police operations building atop it. Police administrative services would remain at 110 James St.

Please see full story by Doug Herod in the St. Catharines Standard at:

Please click on this link to view our Winter 2009 Newsletter

winter_2009.pdf

Niagara Regional Police Chief Wendy Southall should take advantage of St. Catharines' plans for a speedy replacement of the Carlisle Street parking garage to get a speedy solution to police space problems, city councillors say.

In a unanimous motion passed Monday night, councillors voted to "extend an olive branch" to Southall and to the Niagara Regional Police Services Board, said St. Andrew's Coun. Andrew Gill, and to invite the police to piggyback their proposed new headquarters on the new downtown parking garage.

"This is a no-brainer," said Gill, who proposed the motion. "The (provincial Places to Grow) legislation is very clear and we have been a willing partner from the beginning. Our proposal meets the needs as expressed by the chief and by the consultant, and it represents a huge savings for taxpayers."

Gill said even "rank and file police officers" are in favour of a quick solution to the documented crowding and inadequate facilities that a consultant's report has said should be solved by building a new $100-million centralized operations and headquarters facility on the outskirts of Niagara Falls.

Please see full story in the St. Catharines Standard at:

There have been many complaints about the noise and rowdiness downtown, the report said.

In response, the city imposed a temporary bar ban in 2007, and hired a consultant to study and make recommendations on the bar scene.

No new nightspots will be permitted outside the boundaries of the new entertainment district between King, St. Paul, Garden Park and Ontario streets.

Before it implements the new rules, the city will hold an information session Feb. 24 and a public hearing on April 6.

The downtown association and the downtown development and revitalization committee will also be asked for their input.

The new rules will have no impact on existing clubs, and will still permit other licensed establishments from opening.

Please see full story by M. Bergsma in the St. Catharines Standard at:

St. Catharines Mayor Brian McMullan encouraged residents to carry on in the face of hard economic times during his third state of the city address.

“Are you content with the state of the downtown, the opportunities available for our young people and the state of our local economy?” McMullan asked during his speech at Club Roma Friday afternoon. “Can we do better? Yes we can.

“And while I loaned this phrase to President Barack Obama, I think that we need to reclaim it in light of the challenges before us.”

During his talk, hosted by the St. Catharines-Thorold Chamber of Commerce, the mayor focused on projects he said will help improve the city.

Chief among them was the Niagara Centre for the Arts and the Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts, to be located at the old Canada Hair Cloth building in downtown St. Catharines.

Last year was a “pivotal year for the project,” he said, because the city acquired the building, completed a feasibility study and saw Walker donate $15 million to Brock University to support the project.

“This is a large project the likes of which have not been seen in St. Catharines for some time, if ever.”

As he has for several days, McMullan looked to the federal budget, which contains billions in infrastructure dollars, as a way to help the city get through the recession.

Please see full story by G.LaFleche in the St. Catharines Standard at:

Deficit be darned: bring on the money.

So say top politicians in Niagara in the lead-up to Tuesday’s much-anticipated federal budget.

Federal officials have promised a recession-fighting stimulus package that will push Canada into a $34-billion deficit — the first in more than a decade.

“It is a large amount, but in this time of economic crisis, deficit spending is necessary,” Regional Chairman Peter Partington said Friday.

“When times are bad, you spend money as an investment in your future.”...

McMullan said city staff have compiled a list of priority projects they consider “shovel-ready” — essentially construction that could begin within 120 days.

Two top options include:

• The $20-million demolition and rebuilding of the Carlisle Street parking garage, potentially with capacity for office space on top;

• A proposed $25-million hydropower station on Twelve Mile Creek.

Demolition of the parking garage could begin “immediately, if necessary,” McMullan said.

Please see full story in the St.Catharines Standard at:

The Downtown Association is once again helping restaurants and diners shake off those January blahs.

Starting Jan. 18 and running until Jan. 31, 12 downtown restaurants are participating in the Winter O Licious festival. They will be offer fixed, three-course lunch and dinner menus, all for about the price of an entree.

Please see full article in Niagara This Week at: http://www.niagarathisweek.com/news/article/230780

“It’s all in my eye,” he explained.

The way the 30-year-old uses these exciting and eye-catching hues has made people take notice of his craft. Rooney’s pieces prominently feature people he’s fond of, and items of value to those he loves. Twenty such pieces will be on display in his solo exhibit Hand Held, which opens at the Niagara Artists’ Centre on Saturday.

For this exhibit, Rooney who lives in central St. Catharines with his girlfriend, Myshra Zahorchak, started with the goal of painting his brother, Brad’s, hockey card. Brad Rooney is a professional hockey player in Denmark.

From there, Rooney began thinking thematically, looking for a way to link other pieces together. He considered the card, as with the other works in the show, as something that can be held in your hand.

To see the full story by L.Littleton at the St. Catharines Standard visit...

To see the exhibit please visit ...

WHO: Hand Held, by Sheldon Rooney

WHERE: Niagara Artists’ Centre, 354 St. Paul St.

WHEn: Opens Saturday, with a reception at 7:30 p.m., and runs until Jan. 30

open: Wednesday to Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Saturday, noon to 4 p.m.

CALL: 905-641-0331

There are other St. Catharines businesses that aren’t fretting about the future, either.

Business is good at BBBlooms, co-owner Brad Baker said.

“Weddings are big for us, and corporate events,” Baker said, describing the steady pace at the contemporary floral design business he owns with Brian Vogt.

Sales were “down a little,” but the shop even fared well this Christmas season, as corporate and residential clients spent money on Christmas decor, Baker said. “People tended to stay close to home, and the decorating part of our business actually increased.”

Joe Critelli of Critelli’s Furniture on King Street, next door to BBBlooms, said his business is also faring well.

He recently bought the adjacent building that houses BBBlooms because he’s contemplating an expansion, although he has renewed the lease with Baker and Vogt until at least 2010.

Critelli said the expansion plans are temporarily on hold because this fall’s economic uncertainty focused his attention on customer service, but he’s optimistic about the future.

Mark Elliott of Elliott and Company on St. Paul Street said this is the third recession his 22-year-old home decor business has weathered, and he, too, had a good Christmas season.

“We came out of it better than we expected,” Elliott said.

Please see full story by M.Bergsma in the St. Catharines Standard at...

http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1377683

Alderson hopes to change the city’s position on winter plowing.

She’s written a letter to Mayor Brian McMullan and city councillors, asking them to consider plowing Lakeside Park. She’d also like to have the small section of parking lot in Rennie Park — next to the Tim Hortons’ plaza parking lot — plowed for winter use. It’s also not being maintained by the city in the winter.

Alderson said Port’s zoning means that Port Dalhousie’s merchants are not required to provide parking for their customers. The same is true in downtown St. Catharines, but in the city core, the city provides parking in city-owned lots and parking garages.

If Port Dalhousie’s commercial district is exempt from the parking requirement, it should get the same city support that downtown merchants get, Alderson said.

Many years ago, a Port merchant provided plowing at his own expense, but that’s no longer the case, she said. Last year after an enormous snowfall, the city plowed Lakeside Park at the business association’s request, and it sent a $500 bill.

She said her association can’t afford that kind of expense.

Please see full article by M. Bergsma in the St. Catharines Standard at...

Coyote’s Run Estate Winery president Jeff Aubry is serving sugar and spice during this year’s Niagara Icewine Festival and hoping everything will be nice.

Aubry is counting on the crowds to gush into his St. Davids winery for the 10-day festival to try his Sugar and Spice ... Oh, That’s Nice offering: a sample of 2007 Riesling icewine paired with Malaysian-style braised Stevensville pork on grilled Naan bread.

Despite a poor global economy, Aubry is expecting on doing plenty of pouring between Jan. 16 to 25. Coyote’s Run is one of 26 local wineries participating in the festival’s Discovery Pass, which offers visitors six icewine events for $30.

Please see full article by M. Beech in the St. catharines Standard at...

http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1375632

Michelle Bellerose has taken on the challenge of bolstering live music offerings in the downtown core herself.

The Sudbury native, who moved to St. Catharines a couple of years ago, is opening a new venue on Jan. 11 in what had been a vacant storefront at 73 St. Paul St. For the next three months, Bellerose plans to use the space, which she calls Sessions at 73 ( http://sessionsatseventythreesaintpaul.blogspot.com/),as a live performance venue for herself and other artists.

"A lot of people, if they see something going on, will pop in and grab a coffee," she explained. "If they're exposed to five minutes of music, they might come back."

Please see full article by L. Littleton in the St. Catharines Standard at...

When it came time again to contact all the community partners for the free New Year's Eve bus program, Phil Porter found he was beaten to the punch.

As the marketing and customer service co-ordinator of St. Catharines Transit Commission, Porter is responsible for putting the program together every year and making sure it is done without a dime of taxpayer money.

Please see full article by M.Zettle in Niagara this Week at...

http://www.niagarathisweek.com/news/article/228172

If a man's soul could be formed out of bricks and mortar, Nick Hadjiyannakis's would look like the Astoria.

Since 1978, the King Street restaurant has been his job, his passion, his family and his home. Next week, after 30 years on his feet serving everything from omelettes to traditional Greek fare, he and his wife, Kathy, are retiring.

"It's hard. It's very hard," Nick Hadjiyannakis said Tuesday. "I don't have customers, you know? The people that come here are not my customers. They are my friends and my family."

The 66-year-old alternates between roaring laughter, bigger than his wiry frame seems capable of producing, and streams of tears when looking back over his life on King Street.

Please see the rest of the story by G. Lafleche in the St. Catharines Standard at...

http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1368647

For Hector Dedivitiis, it was a chance to finally be like his idol.

When the owner of Stella’s restaurant was approached about hosting this year’s Spirit of Christmas dinner, he didn’t hesitate to lend a hand.

It also gave Dedivitiis the chance to follow in the footsteps of his dad, Paul Sr., who once hosted a similar dinner for seniors at the former Front 54 in Thorold.

“I remember my father doing this all the time and I idolize my dad,” Dedivitiis said, while taking a break from overseeing a feast to feed hundreds of people Christmas Day.

Please see full story by T. Mayer in the St. Catharines Standard at...

http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1363015

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St. Catharines Mayor Brian McMullan has more ammunition in his battle to keep police headquarters downtown.

At the start of Monday's council meeting, a gleeful McMullan read a letter he received that day from Jim Watson, the provincial minister of municipal affairs and housing.

"The good part is coming up," McMullan said, after reading the letter's introduction.

"The province is supportive of directing institutional or public service facilities to our built-up areas, where there is an existing concentration of uses, services and infrastructure," McMullan said, quoting from Watson's letter. "Such direction supports a stronger live-work relationship and allows these areas to benefit from the economic contributions that the workforce will bring to local commercial businesses."

McMullan said Watson's letter supports his view that a plan to centralize all Niagara Regional Police operations in a new $100-million facility on a greenfield site in rural Niagara Falls violates the province's Growth Plan.

Please see full story in The St. Catharines Standard at:

http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1347940

During this week's council love-in over the proposed multizillion-dollar performing arts thingy, city hall types made it clear there was no taxpayer cash remaining for a hockey arena.

According to IceDogs power couple Bill and Denise Burke, this pronouncement triggered a flurry of e-mails from supporters expressing concern the franchise's esence in St. Catharines was now doomed.

This isn't necessarily a new fan affliction. Indeed, the Burkes say one of the biggest hurdles the franchise had to overcome when arriving here last year was a widespread community feeling that the IceDogs would eventually bolt for greener pastures.

Those thoughts dissipated somewhat over the past year given the team's success at the box office, but any indication that a new arena may not be in the cards is enough to cause unease among the faithful.

Please see full story by D.Herod in The St. Catharines Standard at:

http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1345279

St. Catharines fire officials have determined the owner of a downtown rooming house that erupted in flames last week properly maintained the building.

An investigation into the Dec. 4 fire at 131 King St. concluded the owner installed and maintained proper safety equipment, including working smoke alarms, said Chris Leonard, acting chief prevention fire officer.

Fire officials met with the owner and representatives and obtained two years worth of written records for the safety devices, Leonard said.

"The owner was maintaining the building in accordance with the fire code and there's no reason to proceed at this time with charges," Leonard said.

Please see full story in The St. Catharines Standard at:

http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1345270

Astral Media Radio Niagara would like to thank all those who supported The 4th Annual Great Holiday Food Drive in support of Community Care !  We are asked you to join us in the fight against hunger in our community with the gift of non-perishable/cash donations. 

With your help we raised a total of 30,000 pounds of food and over $74,000 in cash.

Special thanks to St. Catharines Transit, Hertz Equipment, Starbucks and especially you for making this year another great success.

To see photo's from the Great Holiday Food drive please visit:

http://www.610cktb.com/gallery_new/4675

"I lost all the meat I had bought," said the 18-year-old St. Catharines woman, who is on a fixed income. "It was all lost."

Fortunately, Sander was able to join nearly 100 other people to accept some Christmas cheer from the owner of MacFrugals Furniture store on St. Paul Street Saturday morning.

The company has been giving away holiday turkeys for a decade, but this year owner Gary Clemmensen said they wanted to do more.

"So this year we are giving away a ham, a 10-pound bag of potatoes, a can of beans and a can of corn," he said. "We just feel like we have a responsibility to give back to the community."

Three Macfrugals stores-- in St. Catharines, Welland and Hamilton -- gave away food to the less fortunate on Saturday.

Please see full story by G.Lafleche in The St. Catharines Standard at:

http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1346437

A man who shattered more than 100 windows in St. Catharines and Thorold won't be allowed out past 8 p. m. for three years when he gets out of jail.

The curfew is included in a three-year probation term that Brian Paugh will have to serve when he is released from jail in two years.

The 30-year-old from Thorold was sentenced to two years less a day in jail for committing 18 counts of mischief under $5,000 and four counts of mischief over $5,000.

The jail time is in addition to 133 days of pretrial custody he served prior to the Dec. 5 sentencing in an Ontario Court of Justice in St. Catharines.

Paugh pleaded guilty earlier to the October 2007 vandalism spree in which windows were broken at the courthouse and library on Church Street and the police administration building at the corner of Church and James streets.

He also broke windows at the Pine Street Plaza in Thorold on May 12, 2008, and July 11, 2008.

Damage to dozens of windows was estimated at more than $160,000,...

Please see full article by K.Walter in The St. Catharines Standard at:

http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1343240

Jeff Pickles purchased a building on St. Paul Street last May with the hopes Brock University's proposed fine arts school will turn ailing downtown St. Catharines around.

The 22-year-old dreams of serving his chili dogs and fries to large crowds at his Philly Avenue restaurant -- a venture he hopes to franchise one day.

But the future downtown turnaround might mean Pickles gets turfed.

His property is among several prime private lands central to the plan to build the Niagara Centre for the Arts and three more theatres on St. Paul Street, at the corner of Carlisle Street.

City council approved the $101-million project in principle on Monday night...

Please see full article by M.Beech in the St. Catharines Standard at:

http://www.scstandard.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1341156

Call it Revenge of the Arts Nerds.

Never exactly top-of-mind in this Smokey and the Bandit burg, culture is now being promoted as the saviour of St. Catharines.

Yee-haw!

Want proof? It's provided in a thick report by big-city Toronto consultants who were practically giddy in chatting up the virtues of bringing a performing arts joint to St. Paul Street.

There's all that stuff about it expanding our minds and nourishing our souls, of course.

But there's more.

Please see full article by D. Herod in the St. Catharines Standard at:

http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1336830

St. Catharines councillors are on a shopping spree, with plans underway for a new $16-million pool and library facility and a new $101-million arts centre and school in partnership with Brock University.

They have committed to raising $30 million through a special 30-year hospital tax of $31 per house per year.

They are also drafting plans to improve or replace several fire stations, and to replace the crumbling Carlisle Street parking garage.

But that’s not stopping them from considering another project for the lower-level parking lot — a 5,000-seat spectator arena.

The 15-member spectator arena task force will meet for the first time this week with a three-point mandate, task force member Merritton Coun. Jeff Burch said.

The new facility must have 5,000 seats, it must be built on city-owned land in the lower-level parking lot, and it must be built with private money.

Please see full article by M. Bergsma in The St. Catharines Standard here:

http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1337905

The curtain is rising on downtown St. Catharines’ cultural revival.

A packed house in city council chambers clapped and cheered Monday night as city councillors unanimously approved a new $101-million development that will include Brock University’s Marilyn I. Walker school of fine and performing arts and a new Niagara Centre for the Arts in downtown St. Catharines.

Please see full article by M. Bergsma in The St. Catharines Standard: 

http://stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1336046

Two companies -- Martin Vinik Planning for the Arts LLC and Levitt Goodman Architects Ltd. -- were hired by Brock Univer sity and the City of St. Catharines in January to investigate the feasibility of relocating Brock's School of Fine and Performing Arts to downtown St. Catharines in concert with the building of a major arts venue. The consultants concluded the project will have "truly enormous economic impacts over time, as the centre changes the very character of downtown St. Catharines, increases property values, stimulates commercial development and fundamentally alters the city's economy."

Toronto consultants hired to study the feasibility of a new Niagara Centre for the Arts are giving their wholehearted endorsement to a $101-million project for the lower-level parking lot that they say will "change the very character of downtown St. Catharines."

Tonight's city council meeting will feature a presentation from the consultants, and a recommendation that councillors approve the massive project in principle.

To see full story in The St. Catharines Standard please visit: 

http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1335217

False fire alarms have been common at the downtown St. Catharines rooming house, and Ley, a resident of 131 King St. who also cleans the two-storey building, wanted to ensure all the tenants knew this time it wasn't a drill.

St. Catharines Fire Cheif Mark Mehlenbacher said careless smoking in one of the second-floor rented rooms likely caused the fire and an estimated $300,000 damage.

"It was very severe," Mehlenbacher said.  "Let's say we're very fortunate that we don't have fatalities."

Mehlenbacher said the fire and smoke damage was extensive. Repairs will have to be made to the building before tenants can return, he said.

Please see full article from The St. Catharines Standard:   http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1331857

City councillors decided Monday to beef up the city's enforcement of its snow-clearing bylaw -- giving property owners a bit more time to shovel, but swooping down 12 hours later and sending a bill if you don't heed the city's warning.

The warning will come in the form of a notice posted on the door.

There will be no requirement to attempt to contact the homeowner.

If the sidewalk is not cleared within 12 hours of the warning being issued, the city will do the job and add the cost to the homeowner's property tax bill.

The city will also begin proactive inspection of sidewalks downtown and along main arterial roads, and will allocate additional staff for inspections and snowclearing.

See full article from The St. Catharines Standard at:

http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1325390

Famous faces popping up downtown

A few double-sided banners hang from lampposts on Church Street in front of city hall. By next Thursday, more than 100 banners featuring famous St. Cathariners will line downtown streets.

There are a lot of familiar faces hanging out downtown.

Olympic rower Buffy Williams keeps watch over the courthouse.

Howard Engel, author of the Benny Cooperman series, is on standby at city hall.

And Rush drummer Neil Peart is guarding police headquarters.

The trio are among 20 famous St. Catharines residents of the past and present who will grace banners on more than 100 downtown lampposts.

http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/PrintArticle.aspx?e=1240133

Thousands line downtown streets for annual Santa Claus Parade

Laura Porzuczek considered herself one of the keenest children around at the St. Catharines Santa Claus Parade Sunday.

Porzuczek, 24, was among thousands who lined downtown streets and braved cold drizzle for the sixth annual event.

"I am a kid right now," she said with a laugh...

see full article from The St. Catharines Standard here:

http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1323820

We've upgraded our website to allow for easier updates, new features for our members, and better business directory listings, plus much much more... so check out our new site and contact us if there's anything we can do to make it even better.

Please be aware, we'll be making some changes and updates as the week progresses.