Check Out The Business Beat This Week Featuring Just Spray It, JA-NEO, Charlotte Products and CAM Containers

PTBOCanada is delighted to be running the Business Beat columns each week here, spotlighting new businesses and startups in Peterborough and the Kawarthas. Here is this week’s edition…

Just Spray It is expanding their insulation services to include blow-in fiberglass insulation in addition to their spray foam insulation service.

Spray foam works great for basements, walls, and hard-to-reach areas while blow-in fiberglass is a great option for attics. They have helped hundreds of homeowners and local businesses save on heating and cooling costs. Founders Rob and Mitch met in college and saw an opportunity to open their business. They are licenced, insured, and ready to insulate your home, garage, or shipping container. You can reach them online at justsprayit.ca.

Celebrate local business leaders by getting an early bird ticket before April 13 for the 2025 Peterborough and Kawartha Lakes Business Hall of Fame on May 29 at 5 p.m.

Now in its 10th year, this annual celebration is put on by Junior Achievement Northern and Eastern Ontario and the event is presented by Drain Bros, Alf Curtis Home Improvements, and Peterborough Truss and Floor LTD. Inductees are selected for their lasting contributions to economic development locally. They embody a legacy of excellence, displaying unwavering commitment, leadership, and innovation throughout their illustrious careers. Get your tickets at ja-neo.org.

The team at Charlotte Products and Swish Maintenance have been busy celebrating some big milestones.

Here’s a shout out to:

• Peter McMurray who just marked 45 years there as a research and development technician

• Ken Fisher, a production mixer who has been with them for 35 years

• Jennifer Toms, the friendly face and voice of Swish as a receptionist of 35 years

• Production stager Carey Laroche who just celebrated 30 years

Congrats to all of you for helping make Charlotte and Swish the success they are today.

We’re going to keep highlighting businesses making stuff locally. Established in 2021, CAM Containers was founded to address the need for more local distribution of bottles and containers within the Canadian market.

CAM is advised by several veterans within the plastic manufacturing industry, as well as the sanitation distribution market, who collectively have over 30 years of experience. With their guidance, CAM is able to navigate through the competitive manufacturing landscape and offer knowledge-based solutions to help meet any customer’s needs.

If you want to have your business featured on the Business Beat or know of a business doing something new and interested, shoot an email to joel@pkchamber.ca.

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Put Your Skills On Display With Third Annual "Peterborough's Got Talent" In Support of Good Neighbours Care Centre

Those looking to showcase their skills can compete at the third annual Peterborough’s Got Talent at Market Hall on April 26.

The Care Centre services an average of 2,000 people per month of which 30 per cent are children. Photo courtesy of Kawartha Home & Health Care Services Inc.

The event is hosted by Kawartha Home & Health Care Services Inc. in support of Good Neighbours Care Centre. The latter is a nonprofit organization that provides food, clothes and personal care items at no cost to people in need in the Peterborough area.

Contestant auditions are being accepted until mid-next week. There will be 12 selected applicants to compete on the big stage on April 26. Donations or audition videos can be submitted to PtboGotTalent@gmail.com.

Tiffany Arcari, “The Tiffany Show,” is the master of ceremonies for the event. Dani Guppy, 100.5 FM Fresh Radio on-air personality; Jason Wilkins, artist; and Sarah Evans of Ball Real Estate are this year’s judges.

Tickets are $30 to attend the event.

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Trent University Surpasses Fundraising Goal Raising $134,543 For 2024 United Way Campaign

Trent University has exceeded its fundraising goal of $120,000 for United Way Peterborough and District, raising $134,543, announced on Friday.

(From Left to right) (Top) Rona Jualla Van Oudenhoven, Julie Davis, Cathy Bruce, Marcus Harvey and Cris de Clercy. (Bottom) Adele Devlin, Alison Scholl, Elyse Sawdon and MK Millard. The United Way supports 20 partner agencies that address key social challenges, including homelessness, domestic violence, mental health, unemployment and addiction. Photo courtesy of Trent University.

“Trent’s United Way campaign is a testament to the power of community. The generosity of Trent’s faculty, staff, and retirees is crucial to building a more resilient, supportive, and inclusive community,” said Dr. Marcus Harvey, executive director of the Trent University Faculty Association and United Way Board Chair. “By supporting the United Way, we make a collective investment in the vital services that provide shelter, food, support, and opportunities for individuals and families throughout the Peterborough and Durham regions.”

The fundraising effort was through employee and retiree donations and special events. The United Way’s ‘Double Your Difference’ gift matching drive gained 36 Trent employees as new donors, resulting in $19,000 through matching, according to a press release.

With the proceeds, United Way can provide 160 nights in a shelter, serve more than 1,400 meals, offer 700 home care visits and create 109 social learning opportunities. This is part of United Way’s $1.5 million campaign goal that was set back in September.

“We are incredibly grateful for the continued generosity of the Trent community,” said Jim Russell, United Way CEO. “As valued United Way champions they set the pace for this year’s campaign, inspiring others to give and be part of something bigger. In a time of rising costs that have especially impacted the agencies we fund and the vulnerable clients they serve, Trent’s commitment makes our community a better place to live, work, and thrive.”

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Peterborough Petes Fall to Kingston In Final Home Game of the Season

The Peterborough Petes end their last home game of the season with a 6-2 loss to the Kingston Frontenacs at the Peterborough Memorial Centre on Thursday night.

Photo courtesy of Kenenth Andersen and the Peterborough Petes.

Before the game, the Petes honoured overagers Brady Stonehouse, Gavin Bryant, and captain Jonathan Melee. They were presented with a gift ahead of their last game as a Pete on home ice.

After allowing a goal from Kingston in the first period, the Petes saw them score just over six minutes into the second period, thanks to Maleek McGowan, for a 2-0 game. Peterborough found the scoresheet on a four-on-three powerplay as Melee one-timed a shot from the faceoff dot for a 2-1 score. Just 50 seconds later, the Petes tied things up as Melee tried a cross-ice pass that was deflected. It ended up on the stick of Braydon McCallum who backhanded it in on tight quarters for a 2-2 game. Unfortunately for Peterborough, they allowed two goals with 68 seconds remaining in the period and found themselves down 4-2 at the end of two stanzas.

Peterborough could only muster seven shots in the third period and failed to find the back of the net on any of them as Kingston tacked on two more goals for a final score of 6-2.

The Petes have two more road games to close their regular season but have already been eliminated from playoff contention. They will take on the Brampton Steelheads at the CAA Centre on Friday night. The team travels to the nation’s capital to play their last game of the season against the Oshawa Generals on Sunday night.

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City of Peterborough Closes Temporary Emergency Shelter

The City of Peterborough closed its temporary emergency shelter that had 30 beds and was operated by Brock Mission on Friday morning.

There are 127 beds in the City’s emergency shelter network plus the Trinity Community Centre overnight program, which includes Brock Mission, Cameron House, YES emergency shelter for youth and families, and Trinity. Photo by David Tuan bui.

The shelter had opened on Monday and operated from 9:30 p.m. to 8:30 a.m. daily during that period. Meant as a temporary, short-term use, it, offered 30 beds nightly

Two people used the temporary shelter on Tuesday night and five people on Wednesday night as reported by the City.

The emergency shelter was opened to provide additional beds in the City’s shelter network.

Those experiencing homelessness who contacted emergency shelters or Social Services to access shelter beds were referred to the temporary shelter starting Monday if beds were unavailable in the regular shelter network.

The City recognized an identified need for shelter beds at this time.

The City arranged to temporarily provide the additional 30 shelter beds at the Morrow Building over five days within the approved homelessness services budget. Providing the temporary shelter bed increase was dependent on the ability to provide the necessary shelter staffing to operate the service over the defined period.

City Council did not support a motion to open a new temporary homeless shelter last month. The motion considered by Council on Feb. 3 would have directed the opening of new temporary shelter spaces for the winter months, which would have been for approximately seven weeks, by increasing the homelessness services budget by $150,000.

They continue to add that opening a temporary shelter for an approximately seven-week period was potentially not possible, as arranging for specialized shelter staffing and other logistics for the service for that amount of time may not have been possible. Council did not support that direction.

They explain that exceeding the Council-approved budget, going beyond staff’s delegated authority for procuring services, or substantially changing service levels would require Council approval. A temporary increase to the shelter network over a five-day period that can be accommodated within the Council-approved homelessness services budget does not exceed that threshold.

A report on the Emergency Winter Response Plan, which was approved by Council in 2023, is anticipated to be presented to Council in the summer.

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Innovation Cluster-Peterborough & the Kawarthas Unveils New Brand and Dynamic Programs to Bolster Canadian Innovation Leadership

Innovation Cluster - Peterborough and the Kawarthas has unveiled its new brand that reflects its updated strategy to focus on the unique needs of technology-based small and medium enterprises in Peterborough and the surrounding area, announced on Thursday morning.

Innovation Cluster Peterborough Nicole Stephenson, Innovation Cluster Board chair(left) and Christine Crandell, Innovation Cluster Board Vice Chair (right), showcase the organization’s new logo as part of a new branding and dynamic programs to help boost Canadian innovation leadership. Photo by David Tuan bui.

The new brand visually reinforces the organization’s mission to support entrepreneurs in reaching their business goals and growing our local community, job market, and economy according to said Nicole Stephenson, Innovation Cluster Board Chair. She also adds that branding represents the Innovation Cluster’s commitment to providing dynamic programming to meet key challenges SMEs face in commercializing and scaling their technology innovations.

“As our organization is evolving, we realize that public perception has not kept pace,” she explained. “This rebranding and new programming underscore our focus on regional economic development, job creation, and supporting technology SMEs to drive Canadian innovation forward.”

New signage of the rebranding is displayed on the first floor and the exterior of the Venture North Building in Peterborough.

According to Innovation Cluster, the logo is inspired by the convergence of three key critical success factors, represented by green, red and yellow arrows.

The colours represent the following:

• Green: Acknowledges the Innovation Cluster’s history and represents business acceleration programs.

• Red: Represents mentoring and advising, critical to realizing measurable results.

• Yellow: Represents the skill and knowledge-building programming essential to sustained growth.

• Blue: The green, red, and yellow arrows merge to acknowledge that all are critical to igniting sustainable forward momentum and long-term success.

In addition to the rebranding, Innovation Cluster also announced the launch of new digital-first programming. They cover three areas: skill and knowledge building, mentoring and advising and business acceleration.

• Educational Programming – New workshops, bootcamps, and mastering series programs that build the breadth and depth of skills and knowledge entrepreneurs need

• Mentoring and Advising - Expanded Experts-in-Residence and Business Advisor roster, including new serial entrepreneurs, vertical industry experts and investors

• Business Accelerator Programming – New accelerator programs for specific company growth stages as a complement to current LevelUp and StartUp Visa programs. New dynamic programming supports entrepreneurs as they progress through their commercialization, scaling, rapid growth, maturity, and innovation stages.

“We are problem solvers, and we push ourselves to be better on behalf of our clients, each other, and our community,” said Christine Crandell, Innovation Cluster Board Vice Chair. “We’re excited to embark on this new chapter and continue supporting technology SMEs as they change the world.”

The rebranded website offers programming, events and member resources to enable technology SMEs to accelerate their growth and market success.

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Peterborough & the Kawarthas Home Builders Association Launch Women In Trades Programs

The Peterborough & the Kawarthas Home Builders Association (PKHBA) has launched two Women in Trades programs with a networking event at the Habitat for Humanity Peterborough & Kawartha Region Lakefield ReStore on Wednesday afternoon.

Photo by David Tuan bui.

Roughly 30 women in skilled trades and construction attended as PKHBA marked the occasion by announcing new programs designed to promote and support women in skilled trades and construction.

PKHBA had launched was the Ambassador Program in partnership with the Kawartha Pine Ridge District School Board (KPR), Peterborough Victoria Northumberland Clarington Catholic District School Board (PVNC) and Fleming College. Its goal is to encourage more women to pursue careers in skilled trades.

The event had representatives from these school partners speak about the programs available for women in skilled trades:

• Johanne Denley (PVNC) highlighted the Ontario Youth Apprenticeship Program (OYAP), the Young Women’s Conference hosted by Skills Ontario in Toronto, and partnerships such as Junior Achievement for FemSTEAM programs.

• Danielle Moher (KPR) discussed the Specialist High Skills Major (SHSM) programs, teacher and guidance training to support students interested in trades, the new Grade 9 Tech curriculum, and opportunities for high school students to gain hands-on experience at job sites.

• Mary MacLeod (Fleming College) spoke about the Building Bridges, dual credit programs and the college’s partnerships with local schools. She noted that over 1,400 high school students had the opportunity to work with tools—some for the first time—sparking an interest in hands-on careers.

The Mentorship Program was also launched as it provides women in construction with guidance and support from experienced industry leaders within the PKHBA membership. It covers four key topics: entrepreneurship, workplace culture, systems and processes and sales and marketing.

“The power of women supporting each other is unmatched,” said Andria Cowan, ACM Designs owner and PKHBA Women in Trades Committee Chair. “By coming together, we can create positive change, open new doors, and inspire future generations of women to explore rewarding careers in the skilled trades.”

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Spring Cleanup Underway Throughout City of Peterborough

With the melting snow uncovering litter in City parks and along streets and sidewalks, spring cleanup is underway throughout the City of Peterborough.

Photo by David Tuan Bui.

With the volume of litter, the City expects the cleanup effort to extend over the next few weeks.

Public Works will use street sweeping machines on routes throughout the City to clean the grit and dirt that accumulates on streets over the winter.

The City maintains 388 garbage bins spanning over 100 parks and along the City’s trail system year-round. In 2024, crews collected just over 333 tonnes of garbage from those receptacles, a 41 per cent increase over 2023 according to the City.

They also maintains 325 garbage bins along City streets and outside City buildings.

Last year, Public Works crews collected 80 tonnes of illegally dumped waste, this includes large items and garbage bags full of waste, five tonnes of litter that includes smaller items such as wrappers, bottles, and coffee cups. Clean Up Peterborough, a volunteer group which organized several litter clean-ups last year collected more than 50,000 cigarette butts from City streets, roads, trails and paths.

Litter composition was made up of:

• 34 per cent recyclables (bottles, bags, food packaging, etc.)

• 32 per cent cigarette butts or other smoking paraphernalia (vapes, etc.)

• 25 per cent organics (food waste)

• 5 per cent textiles (clothes, towels, etc.)

• 4 per cent hazardous waste (pet waste, sharp objects, etc.)

Litter can harm local wildlife and pollute waterways; accumulated litter can attract pests.

Residents are encouraged to do their part by disposing of waste in appropriate receptacles.

Crews regularly maintain the City’s 713 garbage receptacles; however, if a garbage receptacle is complete, residents can report it using its online reporting portal.

The City also implements a street sweeping program to protect the environment by removing pollutants from road surfaces and reducing urban runoff through the stormwater system to downstream water bodies. Street sweeping also improves the cleanliness and aesthetics of City streets and parking lots by removing residual salt and sand used during winter operations.

City street sweepers will clean all 958 lane km of roadway and all City-owned sidewalks, trails and parking lots between March and May once temperatures are continuously above freezing. Many areas receive a secondary sweep as required based on the amount of residue on the surface. The City says work typically takes seven weeks to complete, depending on weather conditions.

Each year, crews start street sweeping in a different area of the City. This year, crews are starting in the downtown core.

Residents are asked to keep streets clear to improve the overall effectiveness of the street-sweeping program. Residents can ensure sweeping equipment can reach the full street surface by removing sports nets, placing garbage and recycling containers on the lawn or driveway and not parking on the street.

When approaching street-sweeping vehicles, please proceed cautiously and allow plenty of room for safe operations.

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Peterborough Petes Call Up Two Players Ahead of the Team's Final Regular Season Home Game

The Peterborough Petes have called up forward Joseph Cadorin from the Pickering Panthers of the OJHL and defenceman Marcus Sulug from the Burlington Eagles U18s ahead of the team’s final home game.

Photo courtesy of the Peterborough Petes.

Both players are expected to be in the lineup against the Kingston Frontenacs on Thursday night.

Cadorin, a native of Kleinburg, Ont. was initially selected by the Petes in the fourth round, 76th overall, in the 2023 OHL Priority Selection. This season, he played one game for the Petes, before playing in 39 games for the Pickering Panthers of the OJHL where he scored 16 goals and added 21 assists for 37 points. He also featured in five playoff games for the Panthers, picking up four points. Last season, Cadorin played 52 games for the Petes, scoring once and adding an assist. He will wear number 24 for Peterborough.

“Joe has had a good year with Pickering in the OJHL,” said Michael Oke, Petes general manager and vice president of operations. “His coaches spoke very highly of him and his development throughout the season.”

Sulug, a defenceman from Stoney Creek, Ont. was drafted by the Petes in the 10th round, 185th overall, in the 2024 OHL Priority Selection out of the Niagara North Stars program. In 2023-24, he played for the North Stars U16 team, picking up five assists in 33 games and another two in eight playoff games. This season, Sulug featured in 21 games for the Burlington Eagles U18s, picking up six assists. He also made his GOJHL debut this season, playing in one game for the St. Catharines Falcons. Sulug will wear number two for the Petes.

“Marcus has made a positive impression with the Burlington U18s this season,”said Oke. “He is expected to be in the lineup tonight and will get his first opportunity to play in the OHL.”

The Petes play their final home game this Thursday as they host the Frontenacs at the Peterborough Memorial Centre. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:05 p.m.

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Peterborough Jr. A Lakers Hire Homegrown Talent As New Assistant Coach

The Peterborough Jr. A Lakers have hired Dustin Dunn as the team’s new assistant coach, taking over the role of Turner Evans, announced on Thursday.

Photo courtesy of the Peterborough Lakers

Dunn joins returning staff such as head coach Robert Hope and assistants Jeff Ralph, Curtis Conley and Taylor Evans.

Turner stepped away from coaching to focus on his young family as his family recently welcomed their third child, alongside work and lacrosse commitments.

The Peterborough native is a product of the hometown’s minor lacrosse system, including a five-year career with the Jr. A Lakers with a Minto Cup victory in 2006 and a selection to the Jr A All-Star team in 2009. His collegiate career consisted of NCAA’s SUNY Potsdam Bears and in CUFLA with the Brock University Badgers.

His professional career saw him drafted by the National Lacrosse League’s Buffalo Bandits and played for the Toronto Rock. He also played in the Major Series Lacrosse with the Brooklin L.C. and Nanaimo Timbermen in the Western Lacrosse League.

Dunn returned to the Peterborough lacrosse scene in 2019, coaching the U13 Peterborough minor lacrosse team to a provincial bronze medal. Most recently, he led the U17 Clarington Green Gaels to an ‘A’ gold medal at the 2024 Ontario Summer Games, with a roster of half of its players from Peterborough due to lacking a local team in that age group. Lacrosse Canada named Dunn their technical/national development teams coordinator earlier this year.

“I’m incredibly excited to join the Lakers as an assistant coach,” said Dunn. “This organization and this city mean so much to me. I grew up in this system, won a Minto Cup here, and now I get to help guide the next generation of Jr A Lakers. It’s an honour to work alongside this coaching staff and contribute to the team’s success.”

“Dustin is a fantastic addition to our staff,” said Hope. “His experience as a player at the highest levels and his proven track record as a coach make him a perfect fit for this team. He understands what it takes to win in Peterborough and I’m confident he’ll bring a fresh perspective and energy to our group.”

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