MUNICIPALITY OF TWEED 2017 GALLERY OF ACCOMPLISHMENTS TWEED PUBLIC LIBRARY
The Tweed Public Library has had a very busy year! Our TD summer reading program was a great success with over 300 participants spread out across the 8 weeks of the program. We capped off the summer reading program with a well-attended magic show. In August the library was chosen by the Canada Post Community Foundation to receive a grant for $500 dollars, we used this money to launch our Building Imagination Lego Club. There were over 20 excited children in attendance for our first meeting in November. We have also held information seminars for the general public on topics such as estate planning and fraud prevention, as well as holding our weekly knitting group and monthly quilting groups which are quite popular. BLACK RIVER TRADING COMPANY
ADDITIONALLY, WE HAVE RECENTLY ADDED A LOT OF INTERESTINGLY CARVED FURNITURE TO OUR OFFERING.
This year we brought in a tremendous pile of pottery from Malaysia and Vietnam, put together a lot of shelving upon which to display it and redid the pottery section of the website. We know who and where the largest pottery outlets are in Ontario and we can now confidently say we have a more diverse and larger collection than anyone else in Ontario, and, by extension, (Ontario being the largest population base in Canada) we think we likely have the best and largest pottery offering in Canada. We have had the most extensive collection of sculpture in Canada for years and one of our goals has been to be able to add interestingly carved furniture to that "best collection you'll find" list. Probably we are there now...not completely sure. FRIENDS OF STOCO LAKE
Established in 2007, the Friends of Stoco Lake is working to improve the overall health of Stoco Lake, for the benefit of people and the environment, in recognition of its important contribution to the quality of life in our community. 2017 was a great year for FOSL, highlighted by these accomplishments:
• Completion of the Stoco Lake Stewardship Plan, in partnership with the Municipality of Tweed and Quinte Conservation
• Continuing our 10th year of mechanical weed harvesting for members and at the Tweed Memorial Park beach
• Receiving a grant from the Federation of Ontario Cottagers Associates to develop invasive species signage that will be placed at local boat launches
For additional information: [email protected] or visit: www.friendsofstocolake.ca Like us on Facebook (‘Friends of Stoco Lake’) Follow us on Twitter (@FOSLStoco) MUNICIPALITY OF TWEED ROADS DEPARTMENT
The Public Works Department had a pretty busy summer. French Settlement Road was prepared and resurfaced with double application tar and chip. The Victoria Street North reconstruction project included new sidewalks, curbs and gutters and resurfacing with hot mix asphalt. • The Classic Car Show took place June 17th at Tweed Memorial Park. There was a great TWEED & attendance for our first year with vendors set up in the Kiwanis Pavilion and the Classic Cars displayed on the lawn. Visitors were able to vote for their favourite vehicle and owners were awarded 1st, 2nd and 3rd place trophies. Next year's event will take place June AREA 16, 2018. CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
2017 was an exciting year for the Tweed & Area Chamber of Commerce. Two new • The Tweed & Area Artisan Road Trip was in support of the Tweed & Area Studio Tour. The events were introduced in the bus visited all 14 stops on the tour, taking in all that the amazing artists/artisans had to Municipality: the Classic Car Show and offer. Tweed & Area Artisan Road Trip. The Elvis Window Display Contest was promoted again this year, and in partnership with the Municipality of Tweed, 10 fire hydrants were painted with unique and attractive creations. For the Elvis Window Display Contest, we asked downtown businesses to decorate their storefronts in this years Tweed Tribute to Elvis Festival theme – “Elvis Still Rocks Canada”. An amazing job was done by all who entered, and we were pleased to award 1st place to BMO, 2nd place to Hidden Treasures, 3rd place to Super Dollar Club and the Spirit Award to the Tweed & Area Heritage Centre.
Local artist Linda Myrie painted 10 fire hydrants this year with each hydrant being sponsored by a local business or service group. We thank the Municipality of Tweed for working with us on this great tourist attraction. TWEED & AREA ARTS COUNCIL
For more than 10 years, the Tweed & Area Arts Council has enriched the cultural life of the community by promoting awareness of and appreciation for the arts. T&AAC had a busy year in 2017:
• We received a $15,000 Trillium grant for improvements to the Marble Arts Centre, and were successful with fundraising through the annual Alberta Young Memorial Jamboree, and the Jack Vance Community & Corporate Golf Challenge
• Highlights of the programming at the Marble Arts Centre included spring and fall sessions of the T&AAC Student Theatre, two shows by the Marble Arts Players (‘Love Letters’ and ’The Great Kooshog Lake Hollis McCauley Fishing Derby’), Opera da Camera’s ‘Departures and Arrivals’, Fight the Moonlight’ with Tweed & Company Theatre, ‘Behind the Camera’ with John and Janet Foster, and the annual ‘Christmas at the Centre’ event ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas
• ‘Art in the Park’ was held at the Memorial Park in Tweed on a lovely August day…
Like us on Facebook (‘Tweed & Area Arts Council’)
Visit our web site www.tweedartscouncil.ca COMMUNITY CARE FOR CENTRAL HASTINGS
• Community Care for Central Hastings is a volunteer based agency for seniors and adults with physical disabilities. We strive to provide programs and services that assist our clients to reside in their own homes and improve the quality of life by assisting them in better utilizing community resources.
• This year we were fortunate to have acquired a second transportation mobility van which allows us to the meet the growing needs of our clients in Madoc, Stirling, Marmora and Tweed areas. In addition to transportation, it also provides services such as Meals on Wheels and Congregate Dining to more than 1,341 clients with the assistance of approximately 290 volunteers.
• We had another successful Dinner Auction in May and are very grateful for all the donations, our volunteers and everyone who attended to support Community Care for Central Hastings. Over $12,000 was raised and will be going towards the many important programs we offer seniors in our communities. MUNICIPALITY OF TWEED PARKS & RECREATION DEPARTMENT
BOAT LAUNCH: The Municipality of Tweed received a grant for the repair and resurfacing of the boat launch at the Tweed Memorial Park. This work was started in the fall of 2017 but, unforturnately due to the weather and other complications the work was not completed on schedule and is due for completion in early 2018. ARENA ENERGY RETROFIT: The Tweed Community Centre is the hub of our community and is very expensive to operate. In order to improve efficiency and lower operating costs the Municipality of Tweed applied for and received a grant from the federal government for an energy retrofit at the arena. This project promotes a clean growth economy by replacing inefficient existing equipment with high efficiency equipment which will improve the efficiency of our operational procedures. TWEED & AREA HERITAGE CENTRE
The Tweed & Area Heritage Centre was thrilled to receive this beautiful tribute to commemorate the 150th Anniversary of Confederation. We had always been aware of polished Tweed marble used in many imposing civic and corporate buildings across Canada. However, in Tweed, there had never been a sample of this highly prized polished Tweed marble. Now, in a prominent location on the main street of the community, we can proudly show to visitors an attractive piece of that marble, featuring both the natural appearance and the beautiful polished surface. The contrasting base highlights the dark marble from the same quarry off Highway 7, east of the Highway 37 junction. The simple maple leaf outline and the dates 1867 - 2017 emphasize the special occasion without detracting from this important Tweed natural artifact. May the present and future generations of Tweedites continue to treasure this meaningful local artifact. MUNICIPALITY OF TWEED BUILDING DEPARTMENT • The Municipality of Tweed has had one of its best years in the Building Department, as follows: • 21 new homes • 220 permits as of December 1st • the Gateway Community Health Centre addition and renovation @ 5.5 million • renovation to The Beer Store @ $20,000 • multiple commercial and residential projects along Victoria Street • and in the working stages of the new Rashotte Home Hardware south of town on Highway 37 D. G. BROWN CONSTRUCTION 355 THOMASBURG RD., THOMASBURG, ONT. K0K 3H0
D. G. Brown Construction is 40 years old LEFT TO RIGHT: AJ VILNEFF, DAN WHITMORE, LEONA DESHANE, this year! We could not have achieved this RODNEY WOOD, DAVID BROWN, JANICE BROWN, MIKE VANWORT. major milestone in business without the hard work of our dedicated crew or without the ongoing support of the Tweed and area residents and business people. We are happy to celebrate our 40th year in business and we look forward to continuing our terrific relationship with the wonderful community of Tweed and area! ENRIGHT CATTLE COMPANY
326 Hunt Rd. Tweed, Ontario K0K3J0 Enright Cattle Co. was a winner of the Bay Of Quinte Start up Pitch night. This is an interactive and fun pitch event where entrepreneurs showcase their companies to (613)848-8149 potential customers and investors, get valuable feedback, and compete for a chance to win the grand prize! www.enrightcattlecompany.com When Finance Minister Bill Morneau and MPP Mike Bosio were doing a tour of rural Enright Cattle Co. was selected as 1 of 10 top Young Farmers from communities we were pleased that Enright Cattle Company was involved. across Canada to participate in Farm Management Canada's Bridging the Gap Program which included attending the International Farm Management Conference in Scotland, the Outstanding Young Farmers Conference in BC and the Ag Excellence Conference in Ottawa.
When Chuck and Danny's Road Trip TV show visited the Municipality of Tweed we were thrilled that they invited Enright Cattle Company to participate in the program and were able to showcase our beef on national TV.
A bus load of farmers visiting from Ireland came to Enright Cattle Co. for a farm tour. TWEED FITNESS GROUP: FUN & FIT; HUFF & PUFF; SIT & FIT
Approximately 25 years ago, a group of mainly retired Tweed ladies started an exercise program which eventually grew into what is now called Fun and Fit. They work out four days a week at the Curling Club with a local professional fitness trainer and recently acquired a full line of fitness equipment through The New Horizons For Seniors program. There are currently over 30 members and growing. Last year a group of Tweed men, many the spouses of the aforementioned ladies, formed the Huff and Puffs to provide the same beneficial results from regular aerobic, strength, and stretching exercises. While their numbers are growing slowly, they now have over a dozen committed members. But this year was very special! A new group called Sit and Fit was formed in June to provide the same exercises as the two other programs but sitting in chairs. Now that may not sound like exercise, but they will tell you that, under the direction of our fabulously fit and fun trainer, Terry Lynn Storms, they are getting a great workout! Word has spread and we now have over 25 regulars in this group. That makes a total of almost 70 Tweed residents who are enjoying the benefits of regular exercise! MUNICIPALITY OF TWEED FIRE DEPARTMENT
2017 has been successful year in that the number of incident calls were much fewer than the previous year which may be due to the higher amount of precipitation.
A great accomplishment by our fire fighting team is the Tanker Shuttle Accreditation that was completed on June 20th, 2017. It was a great success with a lot of time and effort put into training and setup by the Tweed Firefighters. Prior to the testing they did several weeks of training. Their hard work was obvious when the clock started and the men worked together as a team to accomplish their goal of achieving Residential Accreditation.
Three of our long time serving firefighters have retired this year and two new fire fighters have been recruited to join our department.
The fire hall has seen the installation of a new gear washer extractor and gear dryer, pressure washer, and natural gas. All of these new appliances will assist in saving money for our department. TWEED MUSIC FESTIVALS INC.
2017 has been another successful year for Tweed Music Festivals Inc. as we continued to offer a growing portfolio of events to promote Tweed and bring tourism into our community. Our 7th Annual Tweed Elvis Festival was a grand success with audience numbers surpassing previous years and tribute artists from around the world including Canada, England, Germany, New Zealand, the United States and Mexico continuing to seek us out and compete in our competition, many of whom have committed to returning for our 8th annual event in 2018. In October, Tweed Music Festival presented the 2017 Ultimate Elvis Winner, Gordon Hendricks at the Empire Theatre in Belleville. As well as being Tweed’s 2013 Champion, Gordon became Grand Champion in Memphis this past August. As the best in the world, his talent is unsurpassed and he demonstrated that to an enthusiastic audience. Another first for Tweed Music Festivals was the fundraising raffle of an all terrain vehicle (ATV). An effort of this scope can only be successful with the contribution and dedication of its volunteers. All together, Tweed Music Festival produced or participated in several events including the 5th annual Freddy Vette Sock Hop, “All Dressed Up For Christmas”, Tweed Winter Carnival, Santa Claus Parade, Canada Day Parade, Tweed Elvis Festival, Gordon Hendricks Concert, Madoc Car Show and Tweed Harvest Fest. TWEED LIONS CLUB
Throughout 2017, Tweed Lions Club celebrated the Lions Clubs International 100th Anniversary. For the Canada 150 celebration the Club gave away 100 Maple trees in the spring. All summer, the Tweed Lions held its free Sunday concerts, Music in the Park, for the enjoyment of the local community as well as visitors who come to Tweed for the concerts. During this year, the Tweed Lions have donated over $7000 to various groups, including 15 portable music stands for the Gateway Youth Jazz Ensemble. The students and their instructor said the music stands are lighter and easier to carry than the ones they were using. The Lions Club International motto is “We Serve” which the Tweed Lions have done for over 20 years in the community. New members are always welcome. 2017 Marked Tweed & Company Theatre’s largest and most successful season to date, with programming from February to October, drastically increased attendance, and award recognition. This year saw the creation of our 4th major full scale original Canadian Musical, countless sold out performances, and people coming from as far away as Ottawa, Waterloo, Kingston and Peterborough to take in our 9th season of performances. We are so thrilled and excited to be a TWEED & part of the most active and supportive municipality in the country, and we couldn’t do it without you! Below is a list highlighting some of our proudest accomplishments for the year:
• Our season artwork from SALT WATER MOON by Joel MacMeekin was selected as the new COMPANY cover for the printed version by Talon Books. Available now at Chapters, Amazon, and talonbooks.ca THEATRE • Partnership with the TWEED WINTER CARNIVAL to present two sold out performances of SONGBUSTER! The Fully Improvised Musical
• HASTINGS! A New Musical, our Canada 150 project and celebration of our incredible county opened to rave reviews, countless sold out performances, our first student matinee performance, and our highest tourist attendance to date!
• Artistic Director Tim Porter was selected as one of four Culture Days Youth Arts Ambassadors for all of Ontario.
• Created LIVING HISTORY: A Historic Walking Tour that took over 100 people on a walking tour of Tweed’s cultural and historic assets.
• Premiered a new Musical workshop of FIGHT THE MOONLIGHT at the Marble Arts Centre.
• Received the Hasting County TOURISM CHAMPION OF THE YEAR AWARD at the Hastings County Tourism Awards.
THANK YOU for an incredible 2017, and here’s to the future! POTTER SETTLEMENT ARTISAN WINERY
The winegrower's cycle begins in the spring. Potter Settlement Artisan Winery endured an unusually wet spring season in 2017. Continuing worrisome summer rains led to a bumper crop, but unfortunately a bumper crop of robust unripe, green grape clusters .
Concerned that our crop was 3 weeks behind schedule in terms of ripening, our spirits were suddenly lifted by our first accomplishment.
A visit requested by Peter Ward, Governor of the Sommelier Guild of Canada Wine Columnist for the Southam Newspaper Chain - including the Ottawa Citizen Newspaper and former President of the Italian Wine Society. Peter came to Tweed to audit our wines, particularly our Marquette, which he felt was "a world class wine.” He insisted that we submit bottles to both National and International competitions. Our first winner was our 2016 Cabernet Franc wine which placed silver out of 1,700 entries at the Wine Align - National Wine Awards of Canada Competition. Our second winners were our 2016 Marquette and Frontenac Gris Late Harvest wines which placed bronze out of 11 countries and 348 wineries at The International Cold Climate Wine Awards in the United States. We won again at another international wine competition - this time at The Intervin International Wine Awards, with our Marquette wine placing bronze and besting 1,400 entries and 19 countries participating. These awards represent the first for Potter Settlement Artisan Winery, Tweed and Hastings County after only two years of being in business.
Despite the continuing rains, wine tasting tours were thankfully fully booked and business revenue tripled. As if on cue, the sun came out in force at exactly the right moment in September and blessed our vines with unusually hot ‘July’ temperatures. What resulted was a bumper crop of exceptionally-ripened and flavourful grapes that truly made the best vintage we ever had.
Honours continued for Potter Settlement Artisan Winery with an invitation to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's office where Sandor Johnson, accompanied by Hastings MP Mike Bossio, presented their award-winning wines to the leader of our country.
As the year closed, a final honour was bestowed; The Ontario Premier's Award for Agri- Food Innovation was presented to Potter Settlement for their innovative work pioneering Marquette, Frontenac and Petite Pearl grapes in Ontario. Much like what Red Fife wheat has done for Saskatchewan, these cold and disease-resistant grapes have pushed the boundaries of grape-growing northwards in Ontario, paving the way for other vineyards and wineries to flourish where, until Potter Settlement and Tweed pioneered them, none existed.
We are deeply grateful for the abundances that 2017 has given us and look forward to an even more successful 2018! TRAVEL PROFESSIONALS INTERNATIONAL
During 2017, I have been working diligently at getting my travel business up and running. I have grown my travel business by 52% over 2016. I have participated in a few consumer shows and most recently had a booth set up at the Quinte Bridal Show, as shown in the attached photo. I have taken advantage of several opportunities to travel and expand my destination knowledge.
My biggest success for 2017...happy travel clients! TWEED KIWANIS CLUB
Tweed Kiwanis Club has been an active service club for the past 65 years, with a full membership of 33 members. Our main goal is to serve the children of the world and especially those in the Municipality of Tweed area. During the past year we continued to sponsor and support the two elementary schools in Tweed by way of Terrific Kids, BUG Program, Literacy Programs, leadership camps and school trips. Students at the two secondary schools, CHSS in Madoc and St. Theresa in Belleville receive 3 scholarships each, supported by our annual Lottery Draw. Also supported are Tweed Trash Bash, Salvation Army, Queensborough Community Centre, all youth sports organizations in Tweed, along with the Splash Pad, Swimming Pool and Youth Theatre. Through the Gateway Community Health Centre we sponsor G.C.H.C. Jazz Ensemble and their swim program. On a provincial and national level we donate to Hastings Hospice, Alzheimer's Society, Canada., Cancer Society, Rogers House, Belleville General Hospital, Terry Fox Run and Shriners. Our International support went to Kiwanis global campaign for children, uniting with UNICEF to eliminate maternal/neonatal tetanus (MNT) from the earth. During the year our club has a lot of fun doing the Pancake Breakfast at the Curling Club during the Winter Carnival as well as our annual Chicken BBQ at the Pavilion where this year we cooked (BBQ'd) and sold 672 of the best tasting chicken dinners in our area. THE TWEEDSMUIR TAVERN & TALL BOY’S RESTAURANT
The Tweedsmuir Tavern and Tall Boy’s Restaurant are proud to support our local youth sports programs in the form of charitable donations, as well as the use of our meeting room for Tweed Minor Hockey and our OSA baseball teams to organize their season. We also sponsor charitable events in our community like the Show and Shine motorcycle event to raise funds for the Salvation Army, the Tweed CIBC’s Run for the Cure event this summer, and our own fundraising efforts for the Heart of Hastings Hospice for which we raised $7112 this year! We also pride ourselves on being a destination place for our local poets, artists and musicians to showcase their work by hosting First Tuesday Muse Poetry Night, Paint & Sip evenings and providing a stage for our local bands and artists to perform. Tweed Fair TWEED The T.H.A.S. hosted its 136th Agricultural Fair in July, themed "Proud to be Canadian". This small town historical event featured local bands, a youth talent hour, and karaoke for all HUNGERFORD ages. Traditional horse and pony pulls, farm tractor and truck pulls as well as 4-H dairy and beef cattle shows with higher participation than ever, entertained this farming community and many visitors. As usual, the grandstand was filled to capacity during the demolition AGRICULTURAL derby which is always a huge attraction at this annual event. Other attractions included SOCIETY lazer tag, a petting zoo, and lawnmower races. As expected with a theme, Proud to Be Canadian, for Canada’s 150th Birthday, the home crafts division was filled with red and white crafts and a multitude of maple leaves. Youth were encouraged to create "Uniquely Tweed" colourful fire hydrants made out of toilet paper roles as well as box creations of North America Smallest Jail House and the Kiwanis Pavilion. This event is proudly sponsored by the Municipality of Tweed, local businesses, agricultural industry businesses, and local service clubs. The Tweed Hungerford Agricultural Society (T.H.A.S.) hosts many events throughout the year, such as monthly youth dances, pancake breakfasts, as well as our 3 main events, Tweed-Hungerford Agricultural Fair, Touch-A-Truck, and our Haunted Hall. Touch-A-Truck and Haunted hall were created in our endeavour to provide entertainment that was unlike that of our close neighbours. Touch-A-Truck A warm, bright Sunday in September attracted many children and adults to explore with hands on excitement the service and construction vehicles, and farm equipment set up for this event. Miniature horse and wagon rides offered a special treat for the visitors as well as the bonus display of vintage cars and trucks. This $2 admission event (nothing was over $2) featured over 25 modes of transportation and included 25 door prizes donated by local business. Over 150 visitors attended this 3 hour event.
Haunted Hall During the last 2 weekends in October the Agricultural Hall and backyard was turned into a spooky maze. Even the rainy weather didn't stop guests from coming to enjoy the amazingly detailed hall. The Haunted Hall featured a scrap yard, science lab, graveyard, swamp, and a scary forest plus much much more. Over the 2 weekends, 44 volunteers, age 12 years and up, gave the guests something to scream and jump about. 2017 was our 5th year hosting the Haunted Hall and the number of visitors enjoying a good scare has grown to over 500. Winter Carnival The winter carnival was revived in 2016 by the Tweed Music Festival, bringing the community and visitors together on the coldest weekend of that winter. The 2017 Winter Carnival steering committee was the Tweed Hungerford Agricultural Society under the direction of Jennet Honey. The three-day event held on Family Day weekend involved 12 local service clubs as well as a variety of other volunteer groups and businesses. The weekend started off Friday evening with a small parade and a bonfire with smores being served and ended on Sunday with a beautiful display of fireworks reflecting off the snow. A few highlights of the weekend include a pancake breakfast, chili cook-off, kids outdoor winter games, a pool tournament, a bake sale, Jail for Bail, and Tweed & Co. performances of Song Busters.
Harvestfest 2017 The Municipality of Tweed’s first Harvestfest took place the last weekend of September inviting the community and visitors alike to explore our colourful countryside and our small-town charm. Under the direction of Monica Parks, this Tweed Hungerford Agricultural Society event involved 13 service clubs as well as a variety of other volunteer groups and businesses. During this event people of all ages enjoyed karaoke, a pumpkin pie contest, pumpkin carving, youth games, a scarecrow contest, and a glow-in-the-dark 5 km Colour Run/Walk to raise funds to help youth in our community. The weekend ended with horse and wagon rides and piñata games for the children. THE MOIRA As a small retail business in a small town, it's hard to RIVER FOOD pinpoint achievements in a way that most people do. We feel it's a collective partnership that includes our gracious COMPANY customers who make it possible for the shop to thrive and realize its potential every day. We are merely the ones that stock the shelves, source out new products, decorate the windows and clean the floors after our customers have long gone home. To be able to come to this lovely environment every day is what we consider our greatest achievement for 2017 and we thank the "friends of the shop" in part for that. Here's to many more "achievements"! TWEED TRUNK-OR-TREAT
The 5th annual “Trunk or Treat” for 2017 was the best attended ever. This event combines the best aspects of trick-or-treating, providing something for not just the little folks but for parents & guardians as well. Almost 800 children and adults showed their enthusiasm by coming out and meeting the fire fighters and seeing their fire truck, enjoying the free hot dogs, hot chocolate and french fries and touring our haunted tunnel….not to mention lots and lots of goodies (over 5100 pieces!) distributed by our “Trunkers”. THOMASBURG BEAUTIFICATION COMMITTEE
Many improvements to the Thomasburg Spring Garden took place in 2017. One of which is the addition of a wonderful portrait of Thomas Clare (one of the first settlers in the early 1800’s) carved on the stump of the old elm tree, by a local indigenous artist, Levi Caya. It was unveiled to an enthusiastic audience during the Canada 150th Celebration on June 24. This fall water from the spring has, at last, been returned to the garden through a fountain created by Stonepath Greenhouse and Landscaping. Come and visit the heart of our hamlet, Thomasburg Spring Garden! MARLBANK RECREATION & BEAUTIFICATION COMMITTEE This past year has been a great one, especially for the children in our little hamlet. Through fundraising events, a Canada 150 grant as well as a generous grant from the Parrot Foundation we were able to add more equipment to our existing playground. The new and colourful equipment has been a fantastic addition that kids of all ages are enjoying. The introduction of the new and improved playground took place at our Canada 150 Celebration which included face painting, a balloon artist, inflatables, a barbeque and a band. We work hard to better our little hamlet and this year was a shining success. QUEENSBOROUGH COMMUNITY CENTRE
A warm welcome for kayakers: At high-water time on the Black River, kayakers from all over Ontario, Quebec and beyond descend on the Black River to test their skills against the rushing water and to enjoy the North-of-7 scenery. Their adventure concludes at the dam in Queensborough, which many of them go over in their kayaks, a thrilling sight for the crowds of spectators. Awaiting the kayakers beside the river is a warm welcome by an open fire and great food (including homemade pie, of course) prepared by volunteers with the Queensborough Community Centre. Summer fun for kids: The Summer Kids Drop-In Program at the Queensborough Community Centre had its most successful year yet, with dozens of kids taking part in twice-weekly activities throughout the month of July. Stories, crafts, songs, face- painting, and visits by special guests – including a magician and a dinosaur expert – made for a magical experience for Queensborough and area kids! HISTORIC QUEENSBOROUGH DAY 2017 was a smashing success, with more than 500 visitors to our beautiful hamlet enjoying displays about our history, open doors at heritage buildings, horse-and-wagon rides, an antique and classic car show, visits to extraordinary local gardens, a fascinating presentation on this area’s Indigenous history, and a delicious barbecue. This is the second edition of the Queensborough Community Centre’s Historic Queensborough Day, and we are already planning our third, to be held in September 2020. COMMUNITY IMPROVEMENT PLAN (CIP)
Your BR&E Team has been diligently working on creating a Community Improvement Plan (CIP) for the Municipality of Tweed. A CIP is designed to assist in community revitalization and often serves as a catalyst for achieving economic, community planning and urban development goals. Municipalities establish policies in their Official Plans to define CIP project areas which can include large areas of a municipality or targeted areas. We have been working with County Planning to extend our CIP beyond the Village of Tweed to include the Hamlets of Actinolite, Marlbank, Queensborough and Thomasburg. Typically, CIPs include a wide range of financial incentive programs and policies that encourage revitalization and redevelopment, private investment, and support strategic municipal initiatives. CIPs provide several community benefits: stimulate private sector investment in targeted areas through grants and loans from the Municipality; promote revitalization and place-making to attract tourism, business investment and economic development opportunities; promote brownfield cleanup and redevelopment; enhance streetscapes and building façades; and effectively use community infrastructure. Our CIP is near completion. It has been reviewed by Council and has been sent to the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing for their review and comment. Once their feedback has been received, we will then hold a public meeting to present our CIP. Council has agreed to test the CIP in the Village of Tweed in year one prior to rolling it out to the Hamlets. MUNICIPALITY OF TWEED COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT
Black Crappie fishing tournaments: In 2017 we held three separate black crappie fishing tournaments, an ice fishing tournament in January, a kids’ ice fishing tournament in February and another one in April. All three were great sold out events. BACK TO NATURE GRANT
The Municipality of Tweed applied for and received a $5,000.00 grant from Community Futures Development Corporation of North & Central Hastings and South Algonquin for marketing and promotion. With these funds we accomplished the following:
• Yoga & Wine Retreat – 2 events/50 people total. The backdrop of the event was Black River Retreat. 1 ½ hours of Yoga on the Black River. Chef Telford served appetizers and Sandor Johnson of Potter Settlement Winery served wine.
• Promotional Videos – 5 promotional videos were produced. All five videos have been promoted through our website and social media. Business owners are also using these videos on their website and social media to promote their business and increase awareness of all of offerings in our own backyard.
• Paddle Guide – 1,000 guide booklets were produced and distributed at trade shows. It is available online and on our website. We will be putting a large marketing push on our paddling routes in 2018 by partnering up with Ontario Travel, Ontario Highlands, Hastings County, Cruising Canoes, and local businesses.
• Online Marketing – Facebook/Instagram/Twitter were all used to promote #backtonature. From January 1, 2017 to December 31, 2017 the Municipality of Tweed Facebook has had 4,212 new likes and has reached over 5,204,775 people.
• Signage – 3 board signs were placed at the Tweed Community Centre for promotion of year round #backtonature activities. The arena is heavily used year round and a great way to promote to people coming from outside of the community. FARM TO TABLE COMMUNITY DINNER
July 22, 2017 was the perfect summer day to host our Farm to Table Community Dinner to commemorate and celebrate Ontario’s 150th anniversary. Over 1000 people enjoyed this once-in-a-generation celebration of our community, our agriculture, and our heritage. Metcalf Street was closed and transformed into a farm to fork foodie experience where tables and chairs were arranged with place settings and decorations befitting a such a huge feast. Music played while chefs at cooking stations created culinary dishes featuring our local farmer’s products and people mingled savouring the wonderful dinner. For weeks after the event, praise was received for such a wonderful day. Because of this event, the Municipality of Tweed won the Hastings County Tourism Award. Thanks to all of the volunteers and participants for making this such a great experience! 5TH ANNUAL OUR BACKYARD FEAST FROM FARM
For the past five years Our Backyard Feast from Farm has been an outstanding event in the Municipality of Tweed and this year was no different. The day was beautiful with the view of Stoco Lake, the delicious food and all of the vendors. With the addition of our first ever Cook-off Challenge, I am not sure who had more fun, the cooks, the spectators, or the judges. All-in-all it was a great day! MUNICIPALITY OF TWEED SOCIAL MEDIA
The Municipality of Tweed is a leader in Ontario by promoting our region as a visitor destination through social media. We are recognized as being number 6 out of 444 municipalities throughout Ontario as being a leader on Facebook as well as being 14th for most followed on Instagram. We are also currently 2nd for the most liked per capita on Facebook. www.tweed.ca #tweedontario THANK YOU TO ALL OF OUR VOLUNTEERS, BUSINESSES, COMMITTEES AND SERVICE CLUBS FOR EVERYTHING IN 2017
We look forward to seeing what new things will be accomplished in 2018!