Recent News

Quite a lot has been happening in Port Stanley over the last couple of years and the future holds great promise for this exceptional harbour village on the north shore of Lake Erie. Some notable news items…

THE STANLEY CUP MONTHLY CHALLENGE RUNNING GROUP

 First Race is Sunday February 26th! 10am Starting at the Village Square Coffee House (formerly Spicers), 284 Bridge Street.  Port Stanley.

You must register for this race at www.psva.ca.  Sign up so we can send you information on any changes  You can also sign up in person at the Village Square Coffee House.  (Formerly Spicers)

The Stanley Cup Race

Last Sunday of every month starting Sunday February 26th monthly in perpetuity.  Start and Finish for the race is at the Village Square Coffee House. 284 Bridge Street, Port Stanley Ontario. The Stanley Cup will be on display in the cafe and the winner of each race will take it home until the next race. The initial race is 8K and will grow by 2K each race to 16K and then track down to 8K. This is a volunteer event and not official. Run at your own risk. The race route will be determined prior to each event so come a little early. The winner of each race will determine the next route. If you are super human or THOR like, you might get a delayed start. on the next race  You must be 18 or older to run in the longer race or have your parents provide written permission to the PSVA.

The Beginners Challenge

This is a novice race on this day that is a family walk run.  This walk or run race is designed to either get people into running or exercising and encourage healthy living in our community.   This race will be about 2KM.  This race will start just before the bigger race and you will be cheered on my the longer runners.  People of all ages are welcome to join the event and can either walk or run.

 Who will hold the cup?

 We also need volunteers!

Please contact ericsalin@rogers.com if you can volunteer for the morning of the races or would like to help administer this event

Healthy Eating!

There will also be information available on healthy eating  habits, nutrition and tools to achieve healthy weight loss goals.  We are looking for experts to champion this initiative.

Sponsors

To sponsor this event please contactericsalin@rogers.com  Sponsors are only required to make a charitable contribution to a charity of their choosing.

Community Wide Spring Yard and Sidewalk Sale May 12th!

We will be going forward with our Annual Port Stanley Community-wide Yard and Sidewalk Sale each spring and fall.  This spring, our date is May 12th.  The intent is to engage Port Stanley residents and merchants to hold garage/yard sales (for residents) and sidewalk sales (for merchants) at the same times each year in order to draw a large group of visitors/shoppers to Port Stanley for events during the shoulder seasons.

All bargain hunters and garage sale afficiandos in the region were invited to participate in and take advantage of what is hoped to become one of the largest yard and sidewalk sales events in the area. It’s a wonderful opportunity for people to visit and enjoy our beautiful village with its many fine shops, inns and restaurants, with its warm hospitality all set in a gorgeous harbour setting.

Residents and businesses are being encouraged to actively participate in the yard/sidewalk sale and to publicize it as best as possible. It’s hoped that having a ‘signature’ event like this will draw visitors to Port Stanley and help showcase all that ‘Port’ has to offer.

CANFEST 2012

The third annual Port Stanley Canfest is now being organized.  We are currently looking to coordinate with all businesses and service groups for any events that you have planned for the Canada Day Weekend (June 30th-July 2nd).

If you’d like your event, band or fundraiser to be included on the website and brochure, please contact carolgates@gtsportstanley.ca

So far, Sandsculpting for Sally, fireworks, live music in Glover Park, the boat parade, Kids Treasure Hunt will all be back this year!

CANADIAN AIR FORCE SHOW – SMOKE ON THE WATER  – COMING TO PORT STANLEY, WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 2012.

WOW! Plans are well underway to bring the world-famous Canadian Air Force to Port Stanley on the afternoon of Wednesday, September 12th, 2012. Every year, the air force participates in numerous air shows and ground displays around the country, entertaining and educating hundreds and thousands of Canadians. These opportunities allow Canadians a first hand look at the equipment, training and specialized skills of the men and women of the Canadian air force.

NEW BIKE RACKS INSTALLED IN THE VILLAGE 

A total of ten new bike racks at a cost of over $5,000 were generously donated to the village of Port Stanley by Shoreline Getaways, who own rental cottages in the village.  They’re the brainstorm of manager, Merwan Hassan, an avid cyclist who realized that Port Stanley was lacking in bike racks for those who want to cycle and then leave their bikes safely nearby.  Merwan worked with the BIA, PSVA, Central Elgin and Elgin County to design, build, paint and have the racks installed last week.

If you haven’t noticed our new bike racks yet, keep an eye out for the ‘Erie lake-water blue’ metal poles with the ‘ship’s wheel’ circle attached.  The colour and design came from a desire to have a unique and nautical look to the racks and were installed at the Festival Theatre, The Roxy, Why Not Park and on Edith Cavell Boulevard at the municipal parking lot

This fall, Merwan had organized a bike tour along Dexter Line, with a perch dinner afterward at the Buccaneer, but the event had to be cancelled due to inclement weather.  Undaunted, Merwan is planning another event in May, 2012, and is interested in talking to cyclists who want to participate or other individuals/businesses who may want to donate a rack.  Merwan can be contacted at (519) 432–4442.

QUOTA THE FISH FLOATS AGAIN.

On Thursday morning , November 17, QUOTA the fish once again rose from the depths of obscurity and took her rightful place among the inhabitants of Port Stanley. Quota now proudly resides at the cairn atop the new sign recently installed at the intersection of Colborne, Main and Bridge streets and warmly welcomes all the guests, visitors and residents that arrive every day in our beautiful, harbour village (see picture below). A group of about a dozen people, including artists John Hoos and his daughter Helaine Hindley who refurbished Quota as well as media from the Lake Erie Beacon, the St. Thomas Times Journal and The Weekly News  were there. Hats off to everyone, including the many volunteers, the Port Stanley Village Association, the BIA and Central Elgin staff for bringing Quota ‘back to the surface’.

For those of you interested in the history of Quota, it all began in 1995 when Teresa Kelly, a Director of the Port Stanley Business Association (PSBA) was approached by a visiting artist from Toronto.  He showed her a photograph of a pickerel he had done for the village of Bancroft which ultimately led to an agreement that a similar fish would be a very appropriate symbol for the village of Port Stanley and its fishing industry.  The PSBA partnered with the Port Stanley Fishermen’s Association and along with donations from private citizens, $3,000 was raised to pay for the fish’s construction. The work took approximately one month to complete and for those of you who remember, the original ‘finished’ fish was quite impressive in size and detail and lent an aura of ‘uniqueness’ to the village core.

A contest was held to name the mascot and over 500 entries were submitted.  The winning entry ‘Quota’ was submitted by the Reeve of Port Stanley, Penny Tolmey, whose submission reflected the local turmoil caused by low fish stocks and fishing quotas being reached early in the season. There was much discussion about where to place ‘Quota’, and some time later, in the dead of night and unbeknownst to others, PSBA members, Yarmouth Metals and ‘unnamed others’ surreptitiously mounted the 10-foot, 150 pound fish on the Transport Canada sign in Glover Park.  And there it stayed until 2010 when Glover Park was renewed and the mascot was removed due to its poor condition. Subsequently, many business owners and residents questioned the whereabouts and sought the return of ‘Quota’, which was stored in the Central Elgin municipal garage.  In September 2011, the Port Stanley Business Improvement Area (PSBIA), the Port Stanley Village Association (PSVA) and several volunteers jointly organized a project to refurbish Quota and have it installed above the new PSBIA sign at Main and Bridge Streets.  And on November 17, 2011, ‘Quota’ once again rose to the surface and in recognition of the significance of this event, is now listed on the LARGE CANADIAN ROADSIDE ATTRACTIONS website.

PORT OF CLEVELAND OFFICIALS VISIT CENTRAL ELGIN TO CONTINUE CROSS-LAKE FERRY TALKS

Next step is to gauge interest from potential providers

“Officials from the Cleveland-Cuyahoga County Port Authority met in Port Stanley last week with officials from the Municipality of Central Elgin and both sides agreed to begin gauging interest from ferry providers for a cross-lake ferry service. Port and Central Elgin officials will jointly issue a request for expression of interest in early July to ferry providers.  That request will explain what both sides envision for a Cleveland-Port Stanley ferry service and require potential providers to answer a series of questions to determine their interest in the project and to collect suggestions for vessel types, project infrastructure, and the development process.” For the complete news release CLICK HERE.

A handsome new sign welcoming guests, visitors and residents to Port Stanley has been installed at the intersection of Colborne, Main and Bridge streets on the cairn. The sign (click on the photos below to enlarge them) identifies the new website where people can go to find all that Port Stanley has to offer.

RICHARDSON SELLS PORT STANLEY FACILITY TO MUNICIPALITY OF CENTRAL ELGIN (from a Central Elgin News Release – June 28, 2011)

“Richardson International announced today that it has sold its Port Stanley facility to the Corporation of the Municipality of Central Elgin.  The Corporation of the Municipality of Central Elgin has acquired Port Stanley harbour from the federal government and is looking to redevelop the area for non-industrial uses. Today is another important step in achieving a new vision for the Port Stanley waterfront,” says Mayor Bill Walters.  “The purchase of the Richardson property, combined with last year’s acquisition of Port Stanley Harbour, provides the Municipality with another important component in achieving the economic development opportunities and promise that a redeveloped waterfront offers Central Elgin and the surrounding region.” For the complete CE news release article CLICK HERE.

BLUE FLAG FOR PORT STANLEY MAIN BEACH

(news release June 7, 2011 – Municipality of Central Elgin – CE News)

“Port Stanley Main Beach in Central Elgin was again awarded Blue Flag status for 2011. Central Elgin earned this international beach quality standard for the first time in 2010. Port Stanley Main Beach remains the only Canadian beach on Lake Erie to achieve Blue Flag status.

The Blue Flag is awarded to beaches and marinas that meet strict international criteria, including water quality, safety and environmental practices. The Blue Flag was awarded to Central Elgin by Environmental Defence, the organization that administers the international Blue Flag program in Canada.” Click HERE to view the Blue Flag profile of Port Stanley’s Main Beach in Central Elgin.

HARBOUR DIVESTITURE

Perhaps the biggest development has been the recent divestiture of the Port Stanley harbour from Transport Canada to the Municipality of Central Elgin. Over the next several years, the Municipality and concerned citizens and citizen groups (e.g., the Port Stanley Village Association and Port Stanley Business Improvement Area) will be working hard to develop the harbour area while retaining the character and charm that so well defines Port Stanley.

HERITAGE CONSERVATION DISTRICT

Consideration is being given to developing and submitting a proposal to the Municipality of Central Elgin to conduct studies into designating part of Port Stanley a Heritage Conservation District (HCD). The intent of the proposal is to develop some basic architectural guidelines in the area bounded by the BIA and the recently divested harbour area in order to ensure the village retains its essential charm. The process depends on support and approval from the community at large at several stages in order to succeed. For more information about HCD and Port Stanley, please visit the Heritage Port site at: http://www.portstanleyheritage.com/index.htm

HCD Update (June 22, 2011) – as reported in ‘CE News’, at the June meetings of the Municipality of Central Elgin. At the June 20th Council meeting, a presentation was made by representatives of Heritage Central Elgin, the Port Stanley Business Improvement Area (BIA) and the Port Stanley Village Association (PSVA) supporting the creation of a heritage conservation district in Port Stanley. Council directed that a staff report be prepared to estimate the cost of establishing a heritage conservation district as well as a proposed terms of reference  which will address both heritage preservation and urban design standards.

FERRY COMING TO PORT STANLEY?

There have been recent talks between representatives of the Port of Cleveland and the Municipality of Central Elgin about establishing a ferry service between Cleveland and Port Stanley. It’s intended that the service, if it comes to pass, would be geared towards tourism by carrying people, bikes, motorcycles, cars and perhaps a couple of tourist buses back and forth across Lake Erie. The City of Cleveland is home to the Rock ‘n Roll Hall of Fame (housed in a beautiful, 90 million dollar building), the Cleveland Indians Major League Baseball and Cleveland Browns National Football League teams, and boasts the second most active theatre and live arts scene in North America. In return, Port Stanley offers a beautiful beach, boutique shopping and excellent restaurants and can act as a gateway to and from all of southern Ontario for the many Canadians and Americans living around the shores of Lake Erie and beyond. It’s estimated that the ferry crossing and customs clearance would take about the same time as it would to drive from Cleveland to Port; however, the adventure and romance of a cross-lake ferry ride would, without a doubt, be worth the trip itself.

Ferry Update (May 30, 2011) – as reported in ‘CE News’, at the May meeting of the Central Elgin Council, the PORT STANLEY – CLEVELAND CROSS-LAKE FERRY Ferry document was approved. CE News stated that; “A memorandum of understanding with the Cleveland-Cuyahoga County Port Authority was approved by Council. The document expresses the Municipality’s willingness to work exclusively with the Port Authority to explore the feasibility of a cross lake ferry. Central Elgin will also participate in a Request for Proposal for ferry service providers to be issued by the Port Authority in the summer.”

If you’re interested in finding out more about what’s happening in our ‘local’ scene, please refer to the following sources:

For upcoming events, visit the Port Stanley Events Calendar at:  http://www.portstanley.net/upcoming-events

Visit the Port Stanley Village Association (PSVA) website at: http://www.psva.ca/PSVA.ca/Welcome.html

For local on-line news visit Portstanleynews.com the world’s first proportional viewing news web site at: http://www.portstanleynews.com/

The Lake Erie Beacon – a bi-weekly newspaper with a circulation of about 7000, located in Port Stanley (519.782.4563)  reporting on news on the north shore of Lake Erie

For more information about what Port Stanley and the surrounding area have to offer visit our Local Attractions or Regional Attractions pages or http://www.portstanley.ca/

The Municipality of Central Elgin website at: http://www.centralelgin.org/siteengine/activepage.asp

The County of Elgin at: http://www.elgincounty.ca/ElginCounty/default.php