Niagara Falls Fun - Clifton Hill, Niagara Falls Canada

Niagara Falls Activities for Canada Day and Independence Day Long Weekend
The first official long weekend of the summer!

This coming weekend Canada and the United States of America, two great nations, friends and neighbors or neighbours (depending on which side of the mighty Niagara you call home!) are joining together to commemorate the formation of their great countries!

Do you Like Fireworks? This weekend Niagara Falls will detonate loads of them!

July 1st Friday Night at 10 P.M.
Fired from the base of the Niagara gorge, directly across from the American Falls, a spectacular pyrotechnic display will kick off the weekend celebrations in style! To get the best view, be sure to watch from the bottom of Clifton Hill. (Locals secret). These spectacular Canada Day fireworks are provided free for your viewing pleasure by the: local Hotel, Attraction and Restaurant owners of Niagara Falls, Canada.

July 2nd Saturday at 9:40 P.M.
The Seneca Niagara Casino in Niagara Falls, New York will be Celebrating America’s Independence Day with a thunderous array of Fireworks! Best place for viewing? You guessed it, at the base of Clifton Hill.

July 3rd Sunday Night at 10P.M.
Another great fireworks show put on by the Tourism Business community of Niagara Falls, Canada. A third night of watching fireworks might call for a different perspective. Why not from the Niagara Skywheel? The Skywheel is Canada’s largest giant wheel and offers an amazing view 170 feet above the Falls. The SkyWheel is also one of 5 great attractions included on the Clifton Hill FUN PASS, all for only $24.95. It is the best value for attractions in Niagara Falls.

Niagara’s fireworks are a great way to kick off an amazing night on Clifton Hill’s World Famous Street of Fun by the Falls! After the fireworks, be sure to stop by the Great Canadian Midway on your way up ‘The Hill’ and enjoy the challenge of over 300 interactive games! Hungry? A late night snack at Boston Pizza or Kelsey’s Bar & Grill might be in order. Both have a great selection of appetizers and entrées perfect for sharing!

Looking to enjoy some Bowling, Billiards and maybe a Beer? Try Strike Rock and Bowl’s 25,000 square foot entertainment complex; the centerpiece of Niagara’s exciting Nightlife on Clifton Hill.

So, what else is there to do over the long weekend in Niagara Falls? The answer… lots!

International Dance Competition
There is the International Dance Competition on July 2 and 3 at the Scotia Bank Convention Centre. So you think you can Dance? Well these people really can!

Greg Frewin’s Magic Show
A true Las Vegas style show, just a 5-minute walk from Clifton Hill. The “Beyond Belief Magic Show“ runs at 8 p.m. every night of the weekend.

Friendship Festival
Take in a concert under the stars. The Fort Erie Friendship festival has 2 amazing shows scheduled: Big Sugar on Friday night (July 1st) and Ian Thornley & Big Wreck on Saturday (July 2nd). Gates open at 7 pm.

There’s a lot to do at night…What about during the day? Plenty.
Dinosaur Adventure Golf is a great daytime attraction, offering fun for the whole family or for that special someone in your life. Here you can enjoy a relaxing tropical setting complete with a 50 ft tall volcano and waterfall. Just watch out for the towering Dinosaurs! They provide the perfect backdrop for an incredible photo!

Dinosaur Adventure Golf is located directly behind the Niagara Skywheel and is also a part of the Clifton Hill FUN PASS. The FUN PASS offers 5 attractions for $25 including these two must do adventures!

Also, don’t forget to take some time to relax and watch all the people and activity on Clifton Hill’s World Famous Street of Fun by the Falls; It’s a Niagara Falls tradition! The best places to enjoy all the hustle and bustle is from Kelsey’s Patio, where there is great views and live entertainment, which adds to the atmosphere, or Boston Pizza with its open air patio spilling out into the Niagara SkyWheel Courtyard.

There is still so much more to see and do. You will just have to come to Clifton Hill and discover all the Fun by the Falls in person!

Source: Daily Commercial News

Steeling the Niagara Convention & Civic Centre

WILLIAM CONWAY/PROGRESS PHOTOGRAPHY

Structural steel work takes shape on the new Niagara Convention & Civic Centre in Niagara Falls, Ont. Bondfield Construction Co. Ltd., along with MHPM Project Managers Inc., have the opening of the two-storey, design-build centre scheduled for January 2011.

The centre will have an exhibition hall, a ballroom, meeting space, a 1,000-seat theatre and two levels of underground parking. (more…)

From the City of Niagara Falls Mayor’s Office

People Mover Stimulus Funding

Mayor Ted Salci, City of Niagara Falls and the Members of City Council were pleased to welcome the Minister of Justice and Attorney General for Canada, the Honourable Rob Nicholson, Deputy Premier and Minister of Energy and Infrastructure for Ontario, the Honourable George Smitherman, and Niagara Falls MPP Kim Craitor to the Niagara Falls VIA Rail Station Monday, September 25 to receive the announcement of infrastructure stimulus funding in the amount of $25 million from the provincial government and reaffirmation from the federal government of their commitment of $25 million for their much anticipated People Mover System.

The Niagara Falls People Mover Project will allow for integration with local transit, addressing the transportation needs of its residents and visitors alike while meeting the federal and provincial government objectives of developing employment and new growth.

The People Mover System will have a significant impact on the environment by effectively challenging the congestion in the tourist core by removing cars from the roads, thereby reducing greenhouse gas emissions and transporting our visitors and residents in an efficient and effective manner. (more…)

Originally printed in the Review

Harper tours Niagara
PRE-ELECTION CAMPAIGN STOP?
Posted By RAY SPITERI , REVIEW STAFF WRITER

With the possibility of a federal election this fall, Prime Minister Stephen Harper made a campaign- like stop in Niagara Thursday, visiting three locations his government has poured millions of dollars into recently.

Harper joined Niagara Falls MP Rob Nicholson in touring the construction site of the new Niagara Convention and Civic Centre, the Queenston-Lewiston Bridge and the Shaw Festival Theatre. (more…)

Originally printed by the Review

Convention centre shapes up
Posted By COREY LAROCQUE , REVIEW STAFF WRITER

A building permit for the Niagara Convention and Civic Centre is expected to be issued in the next few weeks, as work continues toward the centre’s 2011 completion target.

“It’s tracking on schedule. It’s tracking quite well. Everything is moving along quite nicely,” said Serge Felicetti, the city’s business development officer.

He submitted a report on the convention centre’s progress to city council Monday. (more…)

Printed by the Review

Centre facing cash crunch
No word if private investors will be asked for cash
Convention centre might seek $13M more from government over rising steel costs

Posted By COREY LAROCQUE
REVIEW STAFF WRITER

High steel prices could force the Niagara Convention and Civic Centre to hit up the provincial and federal governments for more cash on top of the $70 million they’ve already chipped in.

Project director Dragan Matovic confirmed the city and convention centre team have “approached” representatives at both levels “with a view to obtaining additional funding” for construction costs.

“We’re being prudent in anticipation of some of the events occurring across the world … We don’t know if this is an issue as of yet,” he said in an interview Tuesday.

Matovic said he wouldn’t comment further because the convention centre is in the middle of its process to hire a builder.

If construction costs remain higher than anticipated, the convention centre could require as much as $13.5 million more, Mayor Ted Salci said.

Neither Matovic nor Salci addressed the question of whether private investors would also be asked to chip in more.

Changes in the prices of steel, concrete and fuel might add between 10 and 15 per cent to the original $90-million construction cost, he estimated.  (more…)

Printed by the Review

Convention centre not jeopardized by province’s $500M shortfall
Posted By COREY LAROCQUE REVIEW STAFF WRITER

The provincial government’s contribution to the Niagara Convention and Civic Centre is not jeopardized by Wednesday’s announcement Ontario will run a deficit this year, says Mayor Ted Salci.

“We’re funded for the convention centre … The money the province committed is in the bank,” Salci said in an interview about how a provincial government deficit might affect municipalities.

One of the biggest provincially funded projects underway in Niagara Falls is the $100-million convention centre to be built on Stanley Avenue. Ontario kicked in $35 million -or one-third -of the estimated cost to build the convention centre.

The province announced its share of the money in its 2007 budget. In an unusual move, provincial officials made two payments of $17.5 million each directly to the city of Niagara Falls before the project began. That money has been sitting in the city’s bank account.

“We’ve already given the money. We’re done,” Niagara Falls MPP Kim Craitor said.

Ottawa, on the other hand, doles its $35 million out as the city submits paid bills.

Other capital projects -like the museum board’s expansion plans for the Lundy’s Lane Historical Museum -could be uncertain as the provincial politicians grapple with a $500-million shortfall in revenue this year.  (more…)

Printed in the August 2008 Update Business News is published by the City of Niagara Falls Community Services Department.

$100 million Niagara Convention and Civic Centre
Niagara Falls will be home to the region’s first convention and civic centre in 2011.

Building upon significant private sector funding commitments; $70 million in Federal and Provincial funding; and support from local municipal and regional governments, plans for the new privatepublic- sector joint venture have moved into high gear.

With funding secured, the Niagara Convention and Civic Centre NCCC began advertising for a president and general manager in late 2007. Kerry Painter, an Ontario native, was the successful candidate and started in her new position and assumed her role with the NCCC on April 15. Ms. Painter brings a wealth of experience to her new job having previously operated various public assembly facilities in Detroit, San Francisco and suburban New Orleans.

One of the first orders of business for the new management team was to put a plan in place to help market the yet to be constructed facility. In May 2008, NCCC unveiled a new positioning and brand identity for the centre that was created by Cundari SFP. “UnConventional Experiences” is the new tag line that will re-enforce local tourism stakeholder’s views that the Niagara region is not your regular convention and meeting place location, and that it offers so many more non-traditional experiences to potential visitors. A new logo that includes a nontraditional interpretation of the famous cataracts and waterfalls was also made public.

NCCC staff have also been actively working on securing bookings. The first major conference booking for the NCCC will be the 2014 Federation of Canadian Municipalities conference.

The convention centre will be located merely 500 yards from the Canadian Horseshoe Falls in the Fallsview Tourist District. The 232,000 sq. ft. complex will feature a 100,000 sq. ft. free-span exhibition hall, 30,000 sq. ft. of flexible meeting space, a 500-seat theatre, state-of-theart technology, and awe inspiring scenery. Presently, the convention centre site is surrounded by 5,000 upscale hotel rooms within a one mile radius, along with numerous dining, retail and entertainment facilities, including the one billion dollar Fallsview Casino Resort.

The $100 million Niagara Convention and Civic Centre project plans to attract approximately 500,000 visitors per year to the Niagara region and create 1,000 person-years of employment annually. The facility is forecasted to generate (more…)

Update Business News is published by the City of Niagara Falls Community Services Department, Business Development 4310 Queen Street, Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada L2E 6X5 Tel: (905) 356-7521 ext. 5000 • Fax: (905) 357-9293 www.niagarafalls.ca • bdd@niagarafalls.ca

Printed by the Review

Convention centre logo gets an ‘A’
Posted By Larocque, Corey

It’s no Nike Swoosh. And it’s not McDonald’s Golden Arches. But the Niagara Convention and Civic Centre’s logo isn’t trying to push a billion cheeseburgers, so its logo will probably work just fine.

Convention centre management held a splashy reception at the Fallsview Casino Friday to unveil its logo and the slogan it’s going to use to bring the world’s convention business to Niagara after 2011.

“It kind of grows on you,” might have been the best reaction, though lots of other people said they loved it. (A black-and-white version of it runs on Page A5. A colour version is attached to website version of this column.)

The company hired to design it called it a “fresh and original interpretation of the falls.”

A fresh and original version of something that has been doing the exact same thing for millions of years. Good luck with that. (more…)

Printed by the Review

New centre wants to be noticed
Posted By COREY LAROCQUE

Niagara’s convention centre is borrowing a page from 7-Up.

Once upon a time, the soft drink company marketed itself as the “un-cola” to separate itself from its competition.

Now the Niagara Convention and Civic Centre will promote itself as “unconventional,” putting an emphasis on delivering “unconventional experiences” to thousands of annual delegates.

“We are going to make sure the world knows Niagara Falls has a convention centre,” manager Kerry Painter said, at a reception Wednesday to unveil the logo and slogan she’ll use to drum up business.

The logo has a series of coloured, vertical bars depicting “an original and fresh interpretation” of the world-famous falls, a press release states. Two blue, wavy horizontal lines represent the relationship between the falls and the Niagara River. (more…)