Lake Ontario Waterfront Trail News

An Ezine Produced by the Waterfront Regeneration Trust

CIBC* COIP*The Lake Ontario waterfront municipalities, conservation authorities and community groups*The Eastern Lake Ontario – St. Lawrence River Waterfront Working Group MapArt* Niagara Freewheelers Bicycle Touring Club* Regional Niagara Bicycling Committee St. Lawrence Cement* Tilley Endurables

June 2005

In this issue:

• Connecting the Waterfront Trail to Quebec
• CIBC Renews Partnership
• Official Opening of Harbourfront Centre Piers and Boardwalk
• June’s Featured Community Group: Bay Area Restoration Council (BARC) in Hamilton
• Upcoming Events
  Visit our website at www.waterfronttrail.org/trail-events.html

Connecting the Waterfront Trail to Quebec

For a week in June, staff from the Waterfront Trust along with Kate Harries for the Toronto Star and Anna Biro, one of our end-to-enders, enjoyed a wonderful cycling tour along the scenic St. Lawrence River from Brockville to Montreal. The trip was a pilot run of the potential extension of the Waterfront Trail east of Brockville. The 230km route over four days took us through gorgeous views of the river and canals. Local leaders and community members from the municipalities and towns welcomed us along the way and indicated their strong support for the extension. The Waterfront Trail extension to the Quebec border is 146kms, 50% of which is either off-road path or paved shoulders and includes the St. Lawrence Recreational Path (90kms).

The Tour kicked off with a well-attended press conference in Brockville organized by Ann Weir of the Brockville and District Chamber of Commerce. On our arrival in Montreal’s La Fountaine Parc, we were cheered over the finish line and warmly welcomed by the press and la Mairesse.

Special thanks go to Mike Lalonde of Cornwall and Seaway Valley Tourism who organized the Ontario portion of the Tour and coordinated the local partner participation, and to Jean-Francois Pronovost and Michel Bedard from Velo Quebec who hosted us for the Quebec portion of our trip.

Stay tuned to our website where we will post our trip itinerary and photos showing highlights from the ride as well as the press releases for the Brockville and Montreal press conferences.

CIBC Renews Partnership

We are pleased to announce that CIBC has renewed its partnership with the Waterfront Regeneration Trust. They have committed $100,000 per year for three years to support the Trust’s work on the Waterfront Trail.
CIBC is a founding corporate partner of the Waterfront Trail and has provided more than $1.2 million since 1996 when they became the first corporate partner of the recently launched Waterfront Trail. The CIBC has made a major investment in this project, our organization and our partnership with the waterfront municipalities and conservation authorities. We are very grateful to them for this.

CIBC representatives, Victor Romard, District Leader Personal and Small Business Banking, and Sebastian Lapointe, District Vice President, Northern Quebec participated in the Brockville and Montreal press conferences where we announced the extension of the Trail to the Quebec Border.

Official Opening of Harbourfront Centre Piers and Boardwalk

As part of the Harbourfront Centre Water’s Edge Revitalization Project, recently the Harbourfront Centre and the Toronto Waterfront Revitalization Corporation held a “Boardwalk Bash” to celebrate the opening of the new piers and boardwalk at York Quay. The Honourable Joe Volpe, Minister responsible for the Toronto Waterfront Revitalization Initiative, The Honourable David Caplan, Minister for Public Infrastructure Renewal, and His Worship Mayor David Miller were on hand to mark the day of festivities at the waterfront.

The Harbourfront Centre Water’s Edge Revitalization Project will reshape and increase public access to the Harbourfront Centre’s water’s edge by improving and enhancing its physical and perceptual connections to the lake. Its an integral part of an overall Toronto Waterfront Revitalization Corporation plan to improve the quality of the public realm on Toronto’s waterfront by establishing a continuous water’s edge that is easily accessible and maintains distinct and consistent design elements and street furnishings.

For more information on this project go to www.towaterfront.ca/topnavloader.php?first=3e9112548cd89 or www.harbourfront.on.ca

June’s Featured Community Group: Bay Area Restoration Council (BARC) in Hamilton

BARC is a confederation of community stakeholders devoted to revitalizing Hamilton Harbour and its watershed. This non-profit group was formed in1991to monitor, assess and promote the Hamilton Harbour Remedial Action Plan (RAP). The RAP identifies what types of pollution enter the harbour, how that pollution will be cleaned up, ensuring that pollution does not affect the harbour again. BARC facilitates community awareness, involvement and participation in the RAP while playing a pivotal role of involving all levels of government and private sector stakeholders in supporting initiatives to address the restoration of the harbour and its watershed.

There are several ways you can support Hamilton Harbour's revitalization.

• participate in BARC's environmental community programs or events,
• make a donation to BARC,
• join a BARC committee

For more information about these programs contact the Bay Area Restoration Council: barc@hamiltonharbour.ca or call 905.527.7111

Next Month’s Feature: The Biosphere Network in Lansdowne, Ontario

Upcoming Events

To learn about upcoming waterfront fesitvals or major community events
happening along the waterfront this summer visit our website at
www.waterfronttrail.org/trail-events.html

Cheers!
Vicki Barron, Executive Director;
Marlaine Koehler, Program Director;
and Nikki Rendle, Editor Lake Ontario Waterfront Trail News

The Waterfront Regeneration Trust
372 Richmond Street West, Suite 308
Toronto, Ontario
M5V 1X6
Tel: 416-943-8080
Fax: 416-943-8068
Email: nr@wrtrust.com
www.waterfronttrail.org

Visit www.waterfronttrail.org to download 77 online colour maps of the Waterfront Trail, from Niagara-on-the-Lake to Brockville!

Thank You to our Supporters!:

• CIBC
• The Lake Ontario waterfront municipalities, conservation authorities and community groups
• The Eastern Lake Ontario­St.Lawrence Waterfront Working Group
• MapArt
• Niagara Freewheelers Bicycle Touring Club
• Regional Niagara Bicycling Committee
• St. Lawrence Cement
• Tilley Endurables
• The Trust would also like to thank the Canada-Ontario Infrastructure Program (COIP) for its generous support of the 51 projects that comprise the Lake Ontario Waterfront Investment Program.