Peterborough Blogs
Don't Miss The Nutty Chocolatier’s Annual Downtown Easter Egg Hunt
/Celebrate Easter at the 29th Annual Downtown Peterborough Easter Egg Hunt hosted by The Nutty Chocolatier on Sunday, April 1st.
The egg hunt starts at noon in the outdoor courtyard of Peterborough Square at the corner of Water and Charlotte streets. This is a FREE event for kids ages three to 10. All children will receive a goody bag and Faces By 2 are offering FREE face painting.
Photo courtesy DBIA
Prizes will be awarded for the Best Spring Bonnet, Best Sports-themed Hat and more.
Bring your camera and get a photo of your child (and selfie, perhaps) with the Easter Bunny and George, King of Downtown.
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Muddy's Pit BBQ Is A Must Eat Spot In Kawarthas
/If you love Southern-style food like pulled pork, brisket and ribs, you must try Muddy's Pit BBQ in Keene near Peterborough.
Picture via @MuddysPitBBQ
It's so delicious that a Search and Rescue Team out of Canadian Forces Base Trenton landed in a farmer's field shortly after Muddy's opened last season so they could grab food there.
Trenton crew that landed near Muddy's April 13th, 2017. Picture via @MuddysPitBBQ
Muddy's, which is located at 3247 County Rd. 2, has fired up the cookers for the 2018 season—it's 9th season in business—and open on April 4th.
Picture via @MuddysPitBBQ
And yes, it's worth the drive to beautiful Keene.
Picture via @MuddysPitBBQ
Sure Sign Of Spring: Green Waste Collection Begins April 3rd
/Here is another great sign that Spring has arrived: The City of Peterborough's Green Waste collection starts up for the season on Tuesday, April 3rd. Leaf and yard waste may be placed at the curb every week for collection on your regular collection day.
Green waste must be in paper yard waste bags, bushel baskets or a garbage bin labeled with the City of Peterborough “Green Waste” stickers. These stickers are free and are available at City Hall, GreenUP and local Home Hardware stores (Merritt on Lansdowne & Kingan on Simcoe). Note that plastic bags will not be accepted.
There are no quantity limits on green waste. So go wild.
Weekly green waste collection will continue through until the last week of November. For more details, contact the City Waste Management Division at 705-742-7777, ext. 1657.
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19 Pictures & Postcards Documenting Market Hall History
/Peterborough's iconic Market Hall has a rich history dating all the way back to its origin as a smaller market in 1851 on Water Street.
In 1889, council approved plans for the construction of a new Market Hall—a large two storey building with a four faced clock tower that opened in 1890 at the corner of George & Charlotte. Below are some key historical moments and pictures/postcards provided by renowned local historian Elwood Jones.
1. The first market hall is visible in the distant right. This is the only known photo of the 1851 Market Hall which famously housed E. C. Hill’s Music Hall on the second floor.
2. The 1875 Bird’s Eye View map of Peterborough has a clear representation of the first Market Hall, complete with verandah. It also provides useful context for the downtown area.
3. This 1882 view of Peterborough was featured on the cover of Peterborough The Electric City. Neither market hall is visible, but notice the Bradburn Opera Hall in the centre and the grand civic buildings from St. Paul’s Church, Court House, St. John’s and the Peter Hamilton factory with black smoke contrasting to the countryside feel.
4. This coloured perspective of the Bradburn Opera House, built in 1875, captures the elegance of a building that housed stores, town government offices and the opera hall. From the Bradburn fonds.
5. This view of the Snowden House shows the Bradburn Opera House in the distance, but a blank where the new Market Hall would have been; the view dates, therefore, between 1875 and 1889.
6. The laying of the cornerstone was a civic holiday for school children. Mayor James Stevenson and architect John Belcher are by the tripod where the stone is about to be laid for the new Market Hall circa 1889. The wall of the Bradburn Opera Building abutted the Market Hall site.
7. This grand picture, circa 1900, shows the joy of winter and a large tree near the corner of George and Charlotte. However, the lineup of three classic buildings sets the corner apart: the Bradburn Opera, the Market Hall, and the Customs Building.
8. The Market Square on market day, circa 1900, was a busy place. Notice the Green Terrace, and to the right, the Otonabee river and a spit of land. This corner was incredibly close to the river.
9. The Market Hall shares the spotlight with the streetcar in this postcard view, c. 1905. Notice the cupola is gone from the Bradburn Opera, and the vacant lands south of the Customs House adorned with Stocker billboards. The Barrie Building (now the Peterborough Inn) was built in 1911-1913, replacing the billboards.
(TVA Postcard Collection, Ken Brown.)
10. This circa 1920 postcard of George Street shows the area around the Market Hall tower, and the passing zone for the street car at the important Charlotte Street intersection.
11. The Market Hall viewed from the Customs House gardens gives a good idea of the size of the building which had a rear wing towards the market square. This is one of my favourite Peterborough postcards, featured in Postcards from Peterborough and the Kawarthas (TVA, 2016).
12. The Market Hall clock was undergoing repair in this 1951 photo, and note the well-crafted woodwork details and two workmen above the clock, which allows us to see the scale.
13. The bus was turning on to Charlotte Street in this 1983 photo of the Market Hall, now next to Peterborough Square. The Italianate details of John Belcher’s elegant masterpiece are highlights of the windows and doors.
14. This 1974 photo shows the early stage of the demolition of the buildings that had long defined the market square: the Bradburn Building, the Neill Shoe Store, and the Bradburn Opera House.
15. This fairly modern picture captures the streetscape along the east side of George Street. Nearly all the buildings date from the 1860s to the 1880s, were built of brick, and generally three storeys in height. Peterborough Square was built to complement this historic and unique streetscape. In contrast to earlier plans, and as suggested by the Peterborough Historical Society, the Square opened on to George Street was built of brick and respected the prevailing height.
16. The Market Hall adds interest and architectural variety to this view of George Street looking north from the Empress Gardens (the former Empress Hotel.)
17. Charlotte Street looking towards the Market Hall. From all directions, the tower points the direction to the city centre.
18. The Market Hall tower is visible over the main part of the Peterborough Square when viewed from Water and Simcoe.
19. Artists and photographers have tackled the Market Hall, and this contemporary painting by D. C. Green is perhaps the most picturesque. From 1939 to 1974, the local business community favoured demolishing the Market Hall and replacing it with modern steel and glass emporium. Since then, it has come to be recognized as distinctive and also representative of the ambitions of the late Victorians and the people of today. Today, the Market Hall is a credit to Peterborough and an object of pride. In view of the roller coaster history of neglect and indifference, it is now recognized as a unique market hall, unmatched in design or style anywhere in the province. John Belcher was a master architect and designer.
Selections and text by local historian Elwood H. Jones, who is an archivist with Trent Valley Archives.
To learn more about the history of the Market Hall, click here.
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City Of Peterborough Seeks Public Input On Feasibility Of Building Multi-Use Sport & Event Centre
/Hallelujah to The City of Peterborough, which is studying the feasibility of building a new multi-use sport and event centre in the City and is seeking public input.
The study is being conducted in two phases, with an initial review of market opportunities to replace the existing Peterborough Memorial Centre and a second phase including a more detailed assessment of potential site locations, concept design and financial implications of investing in a new facility.
The public is invited to join the City's consultants for an information session at the Evinrude Centre:
Date: Tuesday, April 3rd
Time: 6:30 PM – 8:30 PM
Location: Evinrude Centre, Banquet Hall, 911 Monaghan Road
The purpose of the meeting is to provide background to the work, and answer questions like:
• What is a feasibility study?
• Why is an experienced and multi-disciplinary consulting team needed?
• What is the process of this study (Phase 1 and Phase 2) and what might the subsequent process look like?
• What outputs are likely and what impacts may arise?
The City wants to hear your opinion on the project and the merits of a new venue, and what ideal locations should be considered in developing a new multi-use sport and entertainment complex in or around Downtown Peterborough.
The consulting team led by Sierra Planning and Management will provide a presentation and facilitate a general discussion of results of the study so far at the event on April 3rd, and the issues and choices facing the City as a result of the analysis.
The Study has been underway for several months and details of the process can be found on the City of Peterborough website under “Business/Studies & Projects”.
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Peterborough Utilities Crews Just Built An Osprey Nest At London Street Dam
/There used to be an osprey nest on the London Street Generating Station dam that was removed for a dam project.
So on Wednesday (March 21st), a Peterborough Utilities crew installed a fancy new nest (including a perch for great views) in the park adjacent to the London Street footbridge.
Photo via Peterborough Utilities Group Facebook page
A second nest and platform will be installed on the North side of the dam in a couple of weeks by PUG crews.
Ospreys are a welcome sight for bird lovers, and these nests help prevent the osprey and their chicks from nesting on transformers and utility poles, and being electrocuted. Not to mention they prevent transformer fires and outages.
The construction of the nest drew rave reviews on Peterborough Utilities Group Facebook page post: "I was walking by as they started," said one commenter. "So glad they are replacing the one taken down for the dam construction. The osprey have been a wonderful sight for the past years. Thanks!"
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Peterborough Police Participating In Gun Amnesty Program
/The Peterborough Police Service is participating in this year’s Gun Amnesty program in April. The service is one of many police services across the Province, including the OPP, participating in the Gun Amnesty program.
The Gun Amnesty is for any Ontario resident who wants to voluntarily surrender unwanted or illegally-owned firearms, weapons, accessories or ammunition. The Amnesty is a way to provide citizens with a safe way to surrender weapons and enhance public safety.
During the Amnesty, Police will not recommend weapons-related Criminal Code charges that might otherwise apply to people who are turning in these items. (Please note there is no Amnesty offered for people who turn in weapons that have been used in the commission of a crime. Also, no anonymous submissions will be accepted.)
"The safest way to handle an unwanted or illegally-owned firearm is to turn it in for destruction,” says Chief Murray Rodd of Peterborough Police Service.
Interested gun owners are strongly urged to call the Peterborough Police Service’s Alternative Response Unit (ARU) non-emergency number at 705-876-1122, ext. 274 to arrange for officers to attend and safely retrieve the weapons.
NOTE: Under NO circumstances should anyone deliver guns or ammunition directly to police facilities.
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Iconic East City Staple Sullivan's Pharmacy Announces Ownership Change
/Jason Hinton is the new sole owner of the iconic East City business Sullivan’s Pharmacy after his former business partner, Doug Shier, has decided to sell his ownership in the business.
“Sullivan’s continues to deliver the same professional, high-quality service that has made it an iconic East City business,” Hinton says. “I’m extremely pleased to carry on the tradition of this family-owned, independent business that was built by the Sullivan family.”
Jason Hinton
Hinton and Shier purchased the business in 2014, but Shier (who had been a pharamacist there for 32 years) has been absent from Sullivan’s since he decided to take a leave of absence for personal matters in February 2016. When Shier decided he wouldn’t be returning to the business, he offered to sell his share of the business to Hinton.
Prior to joining Sullivan’s Pharmacy as a pharmacist in 2013, Hinton had previously owned and operated Shoppers Drug Mart franchises downtown and at Mapleridge Plaza in Peterborough.
“Doug was a cornerstone of Sullivan’s for many years,” Hinton adds. “He worked closely with the Sullivans and helped guide the transition to the new ownership of the business. I respect his decision to step away from the business to focus on his personal matters. I would like to thank Doug for all his contributions to Sullivan’s and I wish him all the best.”
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Incubated Startup Space For Hired Fleming & Trent Students Will Now Be Free Through New Graduate Program Partnership
/Peterborough's Innovation Cluster is launching a Graduate Program for alumni of Fleming College and Trent University. Graduates hired by Innovation Cluster startups will now be provided free office space in order to further employment opportunities.
The Graduate Program was created in partnership between the Innovation Cluster, Fleming College and Trent University as an incentive that promotes the growth of entrepreneurship, employment and student opportunities in Peterborough.
Photo courtesy Innovation Cluster
“Fleming College and Trent University does a great job at bringing in National and International students,” says Michael Skinner, President & CEO of the Innovation Cluster. “We hope this program will retain this talent in our region.”
The launched program promotes startup companies located in The Cube incubator to hire locally through Fleming College and Trent University alumni, to increase both employment rates for Peterborough’s educational institutions as well as reduce cost for incubated startups.
Currently, startup founders pay a monthly fee of $100 per desk space per employee. This is still the case, however those with current employees who are Trent and Fleming graduates will not incur a fee for desk space, along with future alumni employees hired. Founders accepted into the program through the application process receive complimentary space to ensure that money is put to good use.
Multiple companies within the Cluster who have grown their team by hiring local graduates have been able to reach new milestones with the aid from their employees.
Andrew Revoy, based out of the Innovation Cluster, is a Trent University graduate and Senior Project Manager of startup company Kavtek
