Town council received a series of images to choose from Monday night in order to make their recommendation for the next set of banners to be put up as part of Phase II of the “Gateway to Canada” initiative.
Unlike the last set of banners, which were meant to specifically represent a particular community (e.g., Fort Frances, Dryden, Kenora, etc.), these banners will depict Sunset Country as a whole, Patti Jo Reid, chair of the local Economic Development Advisory Committee, wrote in a letter to council.
“As you know, this regional partnership approach is at the heart of the ‘Gateway to Canada’ concept,” Reid wrote. “It needs to be nurtured to gather partner support for the Canada Discovery Centre in Fort Frances and to build regional tourism.”
The images include a family watching some rapids, a display of traditional First Nations garb, a sailboat on a lake, a father and daughter cycling, two men golfing, two teens jumping in the water, a harbourfront, a man kayaking, a shopping district, an aerial shot of a boat on a lake, and a lone pine standing against a sunset.
Reid noted if council chose to commission more images for specific themes, such as pow-wows, the Kay-Nah-Chi-Wah-Nung Historical Centre, or downtown shopping, or had any other specific ideas, they could choose a professional photographer to take a high-resolution (slide quality) image.
Council must make a decision by Sept. 1.
Fort Frances Mayor Dan Onichuk advised all councillors to look over the sample images, with the aim to discuss any ideas further at the next council meeting Aug. 8.
Also at Monday night’s meeting, council:
•agreed to the recommendation of the Administration and Finance executive committee that the rest of a grant to the local “Communities in Bloom” be paid out in the amount of $1,000 (this is to be used to cover travel expenses for judges);
•agreed to the recommendation of the Administration and Finance executive committee to give “Meals on Wheels” a grant of $11,000 for 2005;
•agreed to the recommendation of the Administration and Finance executive committee that the Town of Fort Frances contribute $1,663 for membership in the Sunset Country Travel Association;
•approved a proposal from Skates & Blades to provide skate sharpening services at the Memorial Sports Centre, and authorized staff to enter into a three-year agreement with the business;
•authorized Couns. Struchan Gilson and Rick Wiedenhoeft to register for the Essentials of Fire Protection seminar in Dryden on Sept. 7-8;
•approved a report to establish a new rate code of $8.97 per hour for the part-time aquatic staff at the Memorial Sports Centre;
•authorized the mayor and clerk to sign applications to the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corp. and FedNor for a youth internship position (museum intern) and forward them to the appropriate organization;
•authorized the mayor and clerk to execute two wage subsidy agreements with the NOHFC; and
•approved a report to remove the sidewalk project on First Street East from the “local improvements” schedule this year and defer it to consideration in future budgets.
Fort Frances Times
Local News from Across the Rainy River District
