St. Catharines Downtown Association

City councillors ranked a new home for the Niagara IceDogs as their No. 1 priority for this term of council.

In a brief strategic planning session Monday led by Freelton consultant Wayne Hussey, councillors talked about and then ranked the big-ticket projects they want to see accomplished during the next four years.

The top two items are a new spectator facility and the Shickluna generating station. Tied for third place were downtown revitalization and increased greening.

Councillors began the session with a list of about a dozen items Hussey had compiled from their responses to an earlier question he posed about their priorities.

Hussey told councillors Monday it's important for them to shorten their project list, because city staff told him they are maxed out.

With the number of big projects on the go in the city — many of them time-sensitive — "the burden of project management underway right now is very heavy," Hussey told councillors. "Senior staff are managing these projects at their limit."

Grantham Coun. Bill Phillips said he was the one who put a downtown civic square on the list. He said it could have a fountain in the summer and a skating rink in the winter.

"It's one relatively inexpensive draw for people outside the city core, and it would make downtown more pleasant for the people living there," said Phillips.

"I also put down civic square," said St. Patrick's Coun. Mark Elliott. "Downtown revitalization has to remain a priority."

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

http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=3009737