List of City Services Operating During 2025 Easter Weekend
/Several City facilities and services will operate under holiday hours or will be closed between Friday and Monday during the Easter Weekend.
File Photo.
Peterborough Blogs
Check Out The Business Beat This Week Featuring Gauvreau Accounting, Peterborough Humane Society, Community Futures Peterborough and Havelock Metal
/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…
Congrats to Bob and the team at Gauvreau Accounting Tax Law Advisory for being recognized by Great Places to Work Canada as number 32 in the country for employers with 100 to 1,000 employees.
Founded in 2008, Gauvreau has grown to more than 200 employees with offices in Peterborough, Toronto, Ottawa, Winnipeg, and Steinbach. While the team has grown, the goal of creating a business where people want to come to work every day remains unchanged. Want to join their team? Gauvreau is planning to hire a number of senior accountants this spring.
Peterborough Humane Society’s 50/50 and Marlin Travel/Collette ‘Ruff’le are back, running until May 14.
Get your tickets by April 17 and you will be entered into the early bird draw for $500. Last year’s two 50/50 winners received nearly $22,000. This year’s ‘Ruff’le is for a $5,000 voucher from Marlin Travel and Collette Travel which can take you anywhere in the world for your dream trip. Not only do you get a chance to win big, but you are supporting the important work of the Peterborough Humane Society. Visit phs5050.ca to see what the jackpot is at and to get your tickets.
The Business Advisory Centre and Community Futures Peterborough have launched a new Tariff Toolkit.
It has been developed with the shared expertise of local economic development teams and trade experts, this toolkit was designed to support businesses navigating the complexities of tariffs and global trade. It includes things like a step-by-step guide to understanding tariffs and how they apply to your products, tariff classification tips to ensure accurate product categorization, an import/export cost calculator template to estimate duties and taxes, and much more. Visit communityfuturespeterborough.ca to download the kit.
We’re going to keep highlight local businesses making things right here in Peterborough and the Kawarthas.
This week we’re showcasing Havelock Metal. They have been in the steel business locally for more than 30 years, specializing in steel roofing, siding, trim, and accessories. They were founded in Havelock in 1993 and moved to their current facility at 901 Major Bennett Drive in Peterborough in 2018. They have a beautiful showroom and allow the public to buy directly from their manufacturing facility.
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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Peterborough Petes Select Kaden McGregor As Franchise's First Number One Overall Pick
/It is official for the Peterborough Petes as Kaden McGregor becomes the club’s first number one overall pick in franchise history at the 2025 OHL Priority Selection, announced on Friday night.
Screenshot.
“I’m speechless,” said McGregor. “This has been a dream of mine, ever since I was a little kid. To hear it finally get called, it’s a surreal moment for me and my family.”
The Braeside native captained the Ottawa Valley Titans U16 AAA club this past season with a 29-2-1 record. McGregor led his team to a league title with 38 goals and 44 assists for 82 points in 29 regular-season games. He also tacked on 24 points in nine playoff contests en route to a championship.
He was named the Hockey Eastern Ontario AAA League U16 Player of the Year, joining former Petes first-round pick and Anaheim Ducks forward Mason McTavish, who won the award in 2019.
“We’re very excited to select Kaden with the first overall pick in the 2025 Priority Selection,” said Michael Oke, general manager and vice president of operations. “Kaden is a right-handed centre who plays a solid two-way game. He had an excellent season with the Ottawa Valley Titans, captaining them to an HEO Championship and being named HEO player of the year. He followed that up with a solid showing in the OHL Cup, finishing third in points and being named to the tournament all-star team.”
The right-handed shot says Petes fans can expect a lot out of him as a number one priority selection.
“They can expect a tenacious forward, someone who can play both ends of the game,” explained McGregor. I prioritize compete level. Every shift, I go out there, I compete as hard as I can. I have high IQ and I like to use my size and speed to set up plays in the offensive zone and make my teammates around me better.”
With McGregor as the first overall pick, he is named the recipient of the Jack Ferguson Award. The award is named after Jack Ferguson, a long-time OHL’s central scouting director. McGregor joins NHL stars such as Eric Lindros, John Tavares, Steven Stamkos, Connor McDavid and Quinton Byfield to receive the honour.
In the OHL Cup, McGregor was the third-highest scorer with three goals and eight assists for 11 points in five games. His performance led the Titans to a quarter-final finish, losing in overtime to the eventual champion Toronto Jr. Canadiens. He was named to the tournament All-Star team, becoming the only player on this year’s All-Star team to not make the finals. This year, McGregor also played in OFSAA for St. Joseph’s High School in Renfrew. McGregor dominated the tournament, scoring 21 goals in six games.
The Petes will introduce McGregor in a press conference on Saturday at 8:45 a.m., which will be live-streamed on their Facebook Page.
Fraudulent Website Rostering Patients Says Peterborough Family Health Team
/The Peterborough Family Health Team (FHT) warns the public of a scamming website (healthdoc.ca) that misleads residents by suggesting it can connect them with local Peterborough family doctors for a fee.
Photo courtesy of FHT.
The website targets individuals seeking a family doctor in Peterborough while the site displays legitimate information about local physicians, it misleads users by requesting financial information during the rostering process.
FHT has released a few tips in order to spot a scamming healthcare website:
Family doctors will not charge people to become a rostered patient;
Family doctors rarely charge for services – if they do, patients are told in advance; and
In Ontario, to get a family doctor you need to register with Health Care Connect.
FHT says that to find a family doctor in Ontario, individuals should register through the official Health Care Connect waitlist provided by the province.
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Community Futures Peterborough Launches New Toolkit to Support Local Businesses With Advice on Managing Tariff Risks
/In response to the ongoing trade challenges posed by United States tariffs, Community Futures Peterborough (CFP) has launched the Tariff Toolkit as a strategic resource to support businesses for the community.
Photo courtesy of CFP.
This is a collaboration with the Business Advisory Centre, the City of Peterborough, the County of Peterborough, the Peterborough Downtown Business Improvement Area (DBIA), and Peterborough + the Kawarthas Chamber of Commerce.
CFP says the evolving trade landscape between Canada and the United States has created uncertainty for local businesses. All aforementioned organizations came together at Market Hall Performing Arts Centre to connect businesses with industry experts who provided initial guidance on minimizing the impact of tariffs on March 4. While the specifics of the tariffs may change, the need for businesses to rethink their approach to trade remains constant according to Devon Girard, CFP executive director.
“We have always been mindful of not only the direct impacts tariffs themselves have on businesses but also tariff speculation and lasting change in consumer buying patterns. Those are the effects our area businesses are feeling right now,” she said.
According to CFP, the Tariff Toolkit is a practical resource that helps businesses assess their current trade strategies and explore new opportunities. It will also offer insights and actionable steps that businesses can work on with their advisors to develop a resilient approach to international trade. It is available to all businesses in the City and County of Peterborough.
“Downtown businesses are navigating an increasingly complex trade environment, and the Tariff Toolkit arrives at a critical time,” said Nour Mazloum, Peterborough Downtown Business Improvement Area executive director. “It equips our businesses with the practical strategies and expert insights they need to adapt, stay competitive, and build long-term resilience. We're proud to support this initiative and ensure our local business community has every opportunity to thrive—no matter the global challenges.”
The Tariff Toolkit offers businesses guidance in key areas, including understanding the financial impact of tariffs, identifying alternative sourcing strategies, expanding customer bases beyond tariff-affected regions, mitigating financial exposure through hedging and risk management, repositioning brand messaging in response to trade shifts, and leveraging local and international partnerships to drive growth.
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Parks Canada to Complete Annual Maintenance On Maria Street and Parkhill Road Bridges In April
/Parks Canada will complete annual spring maintenance on two bridges in Peterborough on Sunday and April 20, announced on Friday.
Photo by David Tuan Bui.
These bridges include:
Maria Street bridge: Sunday from 6 a.m. to noon
Parkhill Road swing bridge: April 20 from 6 a.m. to noon
The bridges will be temporarily closed to all traffic while maintenance is underway. Detour routes will be posted.
Peterborough Transit Route 7 Lansdowne will detour around the Maria Street bridge during the closure, using the Lift Lock tunnel on Sunday. Drivers are asked to use the stop at Hunter and Rogers streets.
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City Seeking Public Input Sought for Transit Terminal Upgrades
/The City of Peterborough invites the public to an information session on Wednesday at City Hall from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. to learn about planned updates to the Simcoe Street Transit Terminal, provide feedback and share ideas on what improvements they would like considered for the space.
File Photo.
The Transit Terminal is located at 190 Simcoe St. The update will reconfigure the bus bay area so that buses no longer have to reverse out of the pickup and drop off locations.
The City is seeking input to ensure that the planned upgrades will meet the community's needs. Residents can learn more about this project and share feedback in an online survey at connectptbo.ca/TransitTerminal. Paper copies of the survey are available at the Customer Service desk at the Transit Terminal.
The current terminal bus bay design, part of the Simcoe Street parking garage built in 1974, has not changed and is still in use. Both the Transportation Master Plan and Transit Route Review and Long-term Growth Strategy identified an ongoing safety concern with the buses backing out of these bays several times each hour.
The current Transit system operates with staggered arrival and departure times for the seven buses that service the terminal, no longer requiring individual bays for each route.
The new design will create a wider platform area from the terminal walls to the platform's edge. These new stop locations will have a “saw-tooth” alignment.
The key features of a sawtooth design are:
Angled Bays: each bay has a designated stopping area at an angle to the curb.
Easier Departure: Buses can leave independently without having to wait for those ahead to move.
Efficient Use of Space: Reduces the required curb length compared to a straight line stop alignment.
Improved Traffic Flow: Minimizes disruptions to traffic lanes.
Improved Safety and Visibility: Drivers have a forward view as they depart. Many transit systems remove conditions that require a bus to reverse. Looking and moving forward reduces the safety risks.
Other improvements and upgrades will include new lighting fixtures and route signage, fresh painting of the walls and under the canopy, new benches and accessibility features. Three new bus shelters will be added along Simcoe Street.
This project is presently in the planning stage, with construction scheduled for the beginning of August 2025 and lasting approximately four weeks.
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Kawartha Dows Releases 2025 Event Schedule; Harness Racing Moved to Back to Saturday Nights
/It's close to post time for Kawartha Downs (KD) as they released their lineup of events for 2025, including their harness racing schedule announced at the track on Thursday morning.
(From left to right) Richard Waldon, Kawartha president; Alpacas Charm, Bijoux, Deidra and Frances Stewart Alpaca Ontario President. One event is the Alpaca Ontario Spring Show this Friday and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Photo by David Tuan Bui.
Harness racing has 18 dates, with the opening day on May 14. The grand opening will feature Ontario Sires Stakes Racing to kick off the racing season. A significant change this year is that harness racing nights are reverted to Saturdays with an earlier post time of 6 p.m. The move was to accommodate cottage-goers, account for highway traffic and be more accessible to everyone.
The track's major change is broadcasting KD races outside of in-house for the first time according to Lindsay Bax, Kawartha Downs harness racing manager.
“We will have our live racing signal on the live Simulcast that will be featured both in Canada and in the United States,” she explained.
The second floor and lounge have received upgrades, which include renovated spaces and increased television sets for viewing other racetracks for betting or entertainment. Bax says more upgrades will follow but they have been delayed due to several factors.
“We will be adding several more things as we come along,” she explained. “With the ice storm in the local area and obviously with all the political climate, a few things were delayed but I think you're going to see two or three more things roll out that will help.”
This year's new events include the Alpaca Ontario Spring Show, the Kawartha Hobby Toy and Collectible Show, and more.
KD wanted to make a concerted effort to ensure that harness racing is for all ages rather than the perceived notion of it just being an adult affair due to its gambling nature.
“100 per cent it is a stigma but harness racing specifically is one of the most approachable sports that you can go to as a family,” explained Bax. “There is no cost to come to the racetrack. If you don't want to wager, you don't have to wager. You can get food and beverage and watch the horses. Everybody's looking to save pennies when you do this as a family and this provides and checks all those boxes.”
A full event list can be found online.
The following are all harness racing dates on Saturdays with post time scheduled for 6 p.m.:
May 17 (Grand Opening with Ontario Sires Stakes Racing)
May 24
May 31
June 7
June 14
June 28
July 5 (Weiner Dog Racing)
July 12
July 19
July 26
Aug. 2
Aug. 9 (Kids Night, Powerwheel Racing)
Aug. 16
Aug. 23
Aug. 30
Sept. 6
Sept. 13
Sept. 20 (Customer and Caretaker Appreciation Night)
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Peterborough Woman Wanted On Several Warrants Arrested After Trying to Flee From Police and Resisting Them
/A 24-year-old Peterborough woman wanted on several warrants was arrested after an incident Wednesday evening.
Photo by David Tuan Bui.
At roughly 8:10 p.m., the Peterborough Police Service received information of a female shoplifter in the area of Charlotte St and Aylmer St. Officers attended the area, located the woman and detained her while investigating the complaint.
Officers learned from the investigation that the suspect had several outstanding warrants. When the female learned of them, she tried to run from the officers but was quickly caught and arrested. During the arrest, the female fought with officers.
The woman faces the following charges:
Robbery with theft
Fail to comply with probation x2
Fail to attend court after having appeared x2
Fail to comply with release order
Escape lawful custody
Resist peace officer
The accused was held in custody and appeared in court on Thursday.
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Celebration of Life For Peterborough Petes Alumnus Greg Millen Held Next Week Thursday
/A celebration of life for Peterborough Petes alumnus, sports broadcaster and longtime local resident Gregory (Greg) Hearst Millen will be held at the Peterborough Memorial Centre next Thursday, starting at 1 p.m. for family, friends and colleagues.
Photo courtesy of Reynolds Funeral Home.
