Residents will get their first close-up look at Prince Arthur’s Landing on Dec. 16.
The city on Tuesday announced a community waterfront celebration for the week prior to Christmas, an event that will mark the official opening of the much-talked-about development officials hope will transform Marina Park into a tourist destination.
It’s also the night the controversial $904,000 beacons, installed this week along the shoreline, will be lit for the first time.
The night will also include a fireworks display.
“There will be a variety of different activities and programs there,” said Doug Henry, Thunder Bay’s events supervisor.
“The skating pond will be open for the first time. We’ll have the fireworks display at 8 p.m. and a welcoming ceremony. So we’re inviting everyone to come down and take a look and see what Prince Arthur’s Landing has to offer.”
Henry said he thinks the public will be pleasantly surprised at what they see, in particular with what’s been done to the Baggage building and the addition of the water pavilion.
“We’ll have those facilities open and it’s a chance to see what’s been done down there,” Henry said.
The reconstruction of the park, which began in October 2009, essentially closing a chunk of Marina Park to the public, saw the public-sector portion of its budget grow this past January by $8.6 million, to $58 million.
It was paid for through a combination municipal, federal and provincial money, the latter two contributing as part of the anti-recession infrastructure spending spree.
Private-sector investment, which includes a pair of seven-storey condominium units and an as-yet-unnamed hotelier, is expected to top $60 million.
“I think there’s a lot people want to see and I think we’ll have a great turnout on the 16th,” Henry said.
Jean-Paul De Roover, the city’s events co-ordinator said the two-and-a-half-hour festivities will kick off at 6 p.m., when Prince Arthur’s Landing greets its first visitors in more than two years.
De Roover said the celebration should finally answer the dozens of questions the public has been asking about the redevelopment.
“There’s been a lot of talk about what’s been happening at the development and everyone’s very curious about what it looks like, what it’s going to look like and just the overall progress of it. Now that some of the buildings are completed, we’d like to unveil it to the community,” De Roover said.
Limited parking will be available on site, but De Roover said the Red River Road pedestrian bridge will be reopened for the event and shuttles, similar to those on Canada Day, will also be available. The Pearl Street entrance will remain closed.
A second ceremony will be held next spring, when federal and provincial dignitaries are available.
Henry said the fireworks will be a combination of those left over from this past Canada Day, with another $8,000 allocated to replace those fired off in foggy conditions that night.
