Council may save July 1 parade
City staff had suggested cancelling Canada Day event over dwindling interest
Staff’s plan had been to drop the parade and replace it with new familyoriented activities in Millennium Park
City councillors plan to save the Canada Day parade in 2024, and then decide whether to keep it going in subsequent years — never mind city staff’s idea of cancelling it for good.
City staff had written a report for councillors to review at a committee meeting on Monday night stating they planned to drop the parade and organize other Canada Day events, starting this year, due to a decline in floats in recent years.
Staff’s plan had been to drop the parade and replace it with new family-oriented activities in Millennium Park, followed by the usual Musicfest free live music show in the evening and then fireworks over Little Lake.
But councillors didn’t want to drop the parade.
Coun. Matt Crowley moved that the parade happen on July 1, 2024, and that city staff then write a new report for council on how it goes. Based on that report, council can consider whether to reinstate the annual parade, starting in 2025.
The motion got unanimous support from councillors Monday but that’s a preliminary vote: there’s a final vote expected at a city council meeting next week, before the plan’s a done deal.
“I know we’ve had a lack of submissions (ie: floats),” Crowley said. “But it’s a very well-attended event. It’s something the community wants.”
The city spends $20,000 to run the parade every year.
City community services commissioner Sheldon Laidman said that’s mostly for paid-duty police, for example, and for city public works staff to close streets.
Mayor Jeff Leal said lots of people approached him at both of Peterborough’s farmers’ markets on Saturday, wanting to talk about the potential cancellation of the
parade.
“Nine out of 10 people who spoke to me want the Canada Day parade — they see it as an iconic event,” Leal said.
Coun. Joy Lachica said she got an email telling her how much the parade means to new Canadians.
“There are different opinions about July 1 — whether you’re a new Canadian who’s just received new citizenship, whether you’ve been naturalized like me — we are all Canadians. And clearly it’s an important tradition. And for people experiencing it for the first time, it’s been very meaningful,” Lachica said. “I think we do need to reconsider this.”
Meanwhile, Coun. Gary Baldwin said city staff was trying to come up with new festivities and didn’t deserve the “unfair criticism” he heard levelled at them.
“It wasn’t, ‘Full stop — we want to cancel the parade,’” Baldwin said. “Council makes that decision — not staff.”
Coun. Alex Bierk said he didn’t think there was any community consultation on the potential cancellation of the parade.
He said he didn’t want to rely on “anecdotes” about what was said at the farmers’ market, for instance.
“I would appreciate knowing really what the community felt,” Bierk said.
Coun. Kevin Duguay and Coun. Lesley Parnell both said the number of floats must increase to keep the parade going.
“Maybe some of us have to roll up our sleeves and get busy — and make it a lot of fun,” Duguay said.
“If we give it one more try — let’s make it or break it,” Parnell said. “Please sign up …. We want more participants, in the parade.”
Coun. Keith Riel said no one on council was ever consulted about the idea of cancelling the Canada Day parade.
He added that he will participate — as he has for years — by marching in the parade.
“I plan to be there,” he said. “And I think it would be a real travesty for us not to have it.”
Riel also said he agreed with Lachica that the Canada Day parade is especially meaningful to new Canadians.
“Let’s show our pride — let’s show our flag. This is a special day for Canada: it’s called Canada Day.”