Guelph-Eramosa Township is taking a cue from its residents and is planning to celebrate Canada’s 150th anniversary throughout the entirety of 2017.
“This report actually comes before you from a number of requests and conversations and emails that I’ve had with residents reaching out asking my department, me specifically in some cases, as to what the municipality’s going to do for Canada’s 150,” said director of parks and recreation Robin Milne at the Aug. 8 council meeting.
The municipality is going to apply for one-time funding from Ontario 150 Community Celebrations Program to help support community activities.
Milne explained that the maximum funding Guelph-Eramosa would receive is 75% of $70,000.
“Traditionally [the township] has not had a Canada Day celebration in Guelph-Eramosa,” Milne said. “So to minimize public expectation of an annual Canada Day event it’s proposed to celebrate Canada 150 with a series of events and initiatives throughout 2017.”
The parks and recreation department put together a list of six proposed events but Milne was said they’re just ideas at this point:
– plant 150 native maple trees throughout the township;
– have a Music in the Garden series at both the Marden and Rockmosa enabling gardens where local Wellington County musicians could perform;
– show Canadian films or films with a Canadian lead actor either in partnership with the Mustang Drive-in Guelph or on an inflatable screen in a public park;
– enhance the grand opening celebrations of the Rockmosa skatepark;
– plant red and white floral displays along the Highway 7 bridge and commercial corridor in Rockwood;
– set up a “chair with a view program” where Adirondack chairs are placed in various locations throughout Guelph-Eramosa, for example Marden pond, Guelph Lake Conservations Area, Indian Trail, Cox Creek Cellars, Eden Mills Community Centre etc.
“So you would go and you would see these,” Milne explained. “We would come up with a hash tag where we would share this and it would be in celebration of our community celebrating not only Ontario’s 150th but also Canada’s 150th.” Visitors would be encouraged to share photos in the chair across social media platforms.
Mayor Chris White said that if the funding does not come through the township will have to make some decisions.
“I think it would be nice to celebrate the 150,” White said. “There’s probably some stuff that we can do that may not be as expensive … Some of the ideas you have may be workable anyway depending on how we structure them.”
