A float in the Canada Day parade in Peterborough in 2010. (Photo: Peterborough Canada Day Parade / Facebook)
Both the City of Peterborough and the Town of Cobourg announced on Thursday (May 12) that Canada Day parades are returning after a two-year absence due to the pandemic.
Following ceremonies at 10 a.m. at Peterborough City Hall, the Peterborough parade — with the theme “Back Together” — will begin at noon on Friday, July 1st, departing from the intersection of George Street North and McDonnel Street before proceeding south down George Street to Morrow Park.
Local community groups and businesses are invited to participate in the parade by entering a float. For more details and to complete a float entry form, visit peterborough.ca/canadaday.
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The Cobourg Canada Day parade will begin at 11 a.m. on Friday, July 1st at the intersection of William Street and King Street before proceeding east on King Street to Victoria Park.
The Cobourg parade will be followed by opening ceremonies for the Cobourg Waterfront Festival at 1 p.m. in the Victoria Park Bandshell, with fireworks over the harbour at 10 p.m. The Cobourg Waterfront Festival, which continues until July 3 at Victoria Park and Rotary Harbourfront Park, will feature musical entertainment, art shows, food and beverages, and activities for kids.
Local businesses and community groups who are interested in participating in the Cobourg parade can complete a participation form on the Town of Cobourg website.
Protesters crowded around federal NDP leader Jagmeet Singh while screaming at him as he left provincial candidate Jen Deck's compaign office in Peterborough on May 10, 2022. The caption on the video refers to Singh as a "scum bag." (kawarthaNOW screenshot of Twitter video)
Peterborough police say they are “actively investigating” a complaint in connection with a protest during Jagmeet Singh’s visit to Peterborough on Tuesday (May 10) where the federal NDP leader was accosted by protesters — and are asking anyone with additional video or other information to contact them.
“Anyone seeing the video should find it disheartening, morally unacceptable, and lacking in respect each resident and visitor deserves,” said acting chief Tim Farquharson in a statement on YouTube, referring to video widely circulated on social media showing protesters verbally abusing Singh.
“Your actions and belief systems are reprehensible, unconscionable, and in some cases criminal,” Farquharson said to those involved in the incident, adding that the police “will use every investigative tool possible to deal with your actions.”
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Responding to widespread criticism there was no police presence during the protest, Farquharson blamed a lack of resources.
“We are aware that, due to our staffing shortages, we’re not always able to engage in pro-active policing patrols,” he said. “We also understand that public safety is of paramount importance, and encourage residents to contact us with their concerns or any evidence that could aid in our investigations.”
Police are asking anyone with any further video or information about the incident to call the Peterborough Police Crime Line at 705-876-1122 x555 or to call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 or submit a tip online at stopcrimehere.ca.
VIDEO: Acting Peterborough Police Chief Tim Farquharson
Peterborough singer-songwriter SJ Riley performs at the Gordon Best in downtown Peterborough on Saturday, May 14 along with Adam Tario, Lisa Canivet, and A Dubz. (Photo: Bryan Reid)
Every Thursday, we publish live music events at pubs and restaurants in Peterborough and the greater Kawarthas region based on information that venues provide to us directly or post on their website or social media channels. Here are the listings for the week of Thursday, May 12 to Wednesday, May 18.
If you’re a pub or restaurant owner and want to be included in our weekly listings, please email our nightlifeNOW editor at nightlife@kawarthanow.com. For concerts and live music events at other venues, check out our Concerts & Live Music page.
Saturday, June 4 7:30pm - Jim Love "Last Man Standing" CD release w/ Slinky and The Boys
Dr. J's BBQ & Brews
282 Aylmer St., Peterborough
(705) 874-5717
Coming Soon
Saturday, May 21 2-4pm - PMBA presents Wylie Harold and Out On Bail ($100 for table of 4, $150 for table of 6, $25 bar seat by e-transfer to . All proceeds help musicians in need)
8pm - Undercover Wednesdays tribute night ft songs of Neil Young (sign-up in advance at )
Kelly's Homelike Inn
205 3rd Street, Cobourg
905-372-3234
Coming Soon
Saturday, June 4 4-8pm - Wicklow
The Locker at The Falls
9 Lindsay St., Fenelon Falls
705-887-6211
Thursday, May 12
8pm - Karaoke w/ Ross Burgoyne
Mainstreet Landing Restaurant
1939 Lakehurst Road, Buckhorn
(705) 657-9094
Thursday, May 12
7-10pm - Ty WIlson
Saturday, May 14
7pm - Karaoke
Coming Soon
Thursday, May 19 7-10pm - Ty WIlson
McGillicafey's Pub & Eatery
13 Bridge St.. N., Hastings
(705) 696-3600
Thursday, May 12
7-10pm - Karaoke
McThirsty's Pint
166 Charlotte St., Peterborough
(705) 743-2220
Friday, May 13
9pm - Live music TBA
Saturday, May 14
9pm - Live music TBA
Oasis Bar & Grill
31 King St. E., Cobourg
(905) 372-6634
Sunday, May 15
6-9pm - Bruce Longman
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Pattie House Smokin' Barbecue
6675 Highway 35, Coboconk
(705) 454-8100
Coming Soon
Saturday, May 21 7:30pm - B&B Blues Band
Pie Eyed Monk Brewery
8 Cambridge St. N., Lindsay
(705) 212-2200
Coming Soon
Friday, May 27 7-11:30pm - Music At the Monk 2 ft Looking For Heather, Phil Heaslip, Cassie Noble, Nathan Truax, SJ Riley ($10 in advance at www.eventbrite.ca/e/273028785447)
The splash pad at Roger's Cove in East City in Peterborough. (Photo courtesy of City of Peterborough)
With summer-like weather this week, most splash pads in City of Peterborough parks are open for the season as of Thursday (May 12).
The splash pads are located at King Edward Park (455 George St. S.), Rogers Cove (131 Maria St.), Kinsmen Park (1 Kinsmen Way at Sherbrooke Street and Clonsilla Avenue), and Barnardo Park (Barnardo Avenue north of Sunset Boulevard).
The splash pad at Nicholls Oval (725 Armour Rd.) remains temporarily closed for maintenance and is expected to open later this spring.
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The splash pads will be open daily over the summer from noon until 7 p.m.
Residents are reminded to follow Peterborough Public Health’s recommendations based on the local COVID-19 Risk Index.
Wading pools in city parks will be opened later in June when lifeguard supervision is provided.
Beaches at Rogers Cove and Beavermead Park will not have supervision until the city’s lifeguard program starts on Saturday, June 25th.
The Ontario election will take place on June 2, 2022. (Photo: Elections Ontario)
kawarthaNOW is polling readers in the greater Kawarthas region to assist us in covering the Ontario election and the positions of local candidates on issues that are important to our readers.
Police are investigating a stabbing in the town of Cobourg on Wednesday night (May 11).
At 11:20 p.m., Cobourg police responded to a report of a disturbance in the area of Havelock Street and James Street West.
A man suffered a stab wound as the result of an altercation. He was transported to hospital by ambulance for minor injuries and was later released.
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Brighton OPP and Durham Regional Police Service K-9 Unit assisted in the investigation.
Police believe this was an isolated event and say there is no concern for public safety at this time.
Residents who live in the area, or were present around the time of the incident, are asked to check their security cameras or dash cameras in the event that the incident was captured on video.
Anyone with information is asked to contact acting detective James Egas of the Cobourg Police Service Criminal Investigations Branch at 905-372-6821 ext. 1004, or leave an anonymous tip with Crime Stoppers by phone by calling 1-800-222-TIPS or online by visiting stopcrimehere.ca.
Guest columnist Paul Baines takes a selfie with other paddlers as they approach the mouth of the Trent River at the end of their 150-kilometre journey along the Trent-Severn Waterway. (Photo: Paul Baines)
GreenUP encourages people to connect with nature and appreciate the health and history of local watersheds. This guest-authored story is the first in a series about a 2021 paddling trip from the Odenaabe (Otonabee) River downstream to Lake Ontario. One of the inspirations behind the trip was to connect with the watershed, its history, and the traditional migration of the Atlantic salmon along this route.
This first story in the series is written by Paul Baines, Blue Community Coordinator for the Federation of the Sisters of St. Joseph. This program protects water as a human right, shared commons, and sacred gift.
Each week, GreenUP provides a story related to the environment. This week’s guest column is by Paul Baines, Blue Community Coordinator for the Federation of the Sisters of St. Joseph.
I often hear that ‘modern’ people have lost their connection to nature. Conditioned air, paved paths, GPS, illuminated nights, 4K screens — what we call ‘a lifestyle’ these days. But with every inhale, every drink of water, every digital switch or analog button we press, and every cushioned stride we take, we are always connected to the living earth. What many of us have lost or are at risk of losing (including myself) is our sense of connection to nature.
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I live on the Odenaabe (Otonabee) River and have a job that aims to connect people to their watershed. I’ve often thought about who and what is downstream from me, the history of this territory, and how we all connect to water.
Last May, some friends and I took a paddling trip over 150 kilometres from the Odenaabe River down to the mouth of the Trent River where she meets Lake Ontario. This adventure was planned as 10 separate day trips over the spring, summer, and fall. In October, we reached the Bay of Quinte and finished on the shores of Prince Edward County.
For each trip, between two and nine friends joined with their canoes or kayaks. In total, 16 of us (and two dogs) took part in at least one leg of this journey. Here is a map of our route.
A map of the 10 daytrips Paul Baines and his friends made to explore the route from Peterborough to the Bay of Quinte. (Graphic: Paul Baines / Open Street Maps)
We planned each route attuned to the elements — our larger guide. Dry weather, sunshine, low winds or downwind, rest stops, swimming options, and daily total paddle distances. As settler-immigrants in Canada who have all lived in this watershed for several years, most of us had never paddled and pondered the southern Odenaabe, Rice Lake, or the Trent River.
Most other people we saw on the waters were in motor boats: fishing boats, pontoon boats, speed boats, and even houseboats. With our human-powered pace, floating and shoreline lunches, wildlife and town life explorations, and swim dips, I felt right at home within this larger water body.
It was often tricky to find public access spots to launch, since roads were mainly built to access private property. Everyone loves living by the water. We saw families and retirees with raised Canadian flags on the shoreline along with tall silver maples, fresh layers of ferns, and statuesque great blue herons.
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I was able to sense the multiple relationships that the waters invite: home, recreation, transportation, heritage, hydration and sanitation, tourism, play, refuge, and admiration.
We would often open or close our paddle day with a simple ritual of intentions and gratitude.
Carried by the river’s measured flow, we portaged around or navigated through 18 historic locks. My lungs filled with the blue expansiveness of Rice Lake, my ears were tickled by the many birdsongs in the thick marshes near Keene, and my body and boat swayed within the waves caused by high winds and motor boats.
I also felt a numbness and even sadness when the river was channelized for marine navigation, water level control, and electricity generation.
These large pipes divert water from the Trent River to generate hydro power at Locks 16/17. (Photo: Paul Baines)
One of the most dramatic ways the river was shaped was in 1910 at giant flight locks near Healey Falls (locks number 16 and 17). Here, the Trent River is split into three parts: one part lock, one part hydro dam, and one part into three huge metal tubes that are each five meters wide and 150 meters long.
These tubes manage the river into a large hydro generating brick building. It’s impossible for me to sense what this place would have looked and felt like over 100 years ago with its bubbling and beating rapids and its unbroken waterfalls.
One sense I carried throughout this experience was the ghost of the Atlantic Salmon. For over 12,000 years, these silver ‘kings of fish’ embodied these waters and fed the bodies and spirit of the Michi Saagiig Nishnaabeg who consider themselves to be salmon people — the traditional people and caretakers of this territory.
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But within 100 years of steadfast European settlement, values, and impacts, the Atlantic Salmon became extinct to these waterbodies. Since the 1890s, no one has been able to celebrate the salmon’s upstream return each fall season — a homecoming.
I see a small section of the Odenaabe from my home window. This trip extended my attention and senses. I can now better understand a much larger shoreline and storyline.
I hope you can extend your senses within this watershed as the summer months approach. Follow this journey again in June as Jenn McCallum enriches our understanding and appreciation of this watershed’s vitality.
Dusk at the huge flight locks (numbers 16 and 17) near Ferris Provincial Park. (Photo: Paul Baines)
Two protestors give federal NDP leader Jagmeet Singh the finger while yelling abusive comments as the politician got into his vehicle following a stop at provincial NDP candidate Jen Deck's campaign office in downtown Peterborough on May 10, 2022. (Screenshot of Facebook video)
Peterborough is in the national spotlight and not in a good way, thanks to the actions of a small group of protesters who aggressively accosted federal NDP leader Jagmeet Singh during his stop on Tuesday afternoon (May 11) at provincial NDP candidate Jen Deck’s campaign office.
While Singh was leaving the George Street office, protesters yelled and screamed at him, calling him a “f**king traitor”, a “lying piece of sh*t”, and told him to “go f**k yourself,” with some showing him their middle finger.
Singh addressed the incident at a media conference in Ottawa on Wednesday after a reporter asked him about the experience.
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“I’ve been to Peterborough a number of times and I’ve always been really well-received and had a good time,” Singh began, before describing what he later said was one of his “worst experiences” in politics.
“There were some folks who were saying some really bad, some really horrible things. Some folks were saying ‘Hope you die’ and things along that nature. (There was) a lot of aggression and violence in terms of the behaviour and demeanour.”
The protest was organized by Roy Asseltine and Nicole Comber — owner of Peterburgers, a burger restaurant that was shut down last December for four months for violating public health restrictions — shortly after they found out Singh would be arriving at Deck’s campaign office.
“We need to get everybody down there.”
“We need to let @theJagmeetSingh know that he’s not welcome here.”
Asseltine and Comber posted a video asking protesters to come to Deck’s campaign office, and a “call to action” was also posted on the “Hold Fast” Facebook group.
Comber livestreamed part of the protest on Facebook, and other videos taken by protesters’ were circulated on social media.
Singh received most of the harassment and verbal abuse when he was leaving Deck’s office by the front door.
6) More up close video as Jagmeet Singh left the building where you can REALLY hear the disgusting things the crowd is saying. Might not be safe for work, so watch the volume before you listen to it at. #ptbopic.twitter.com/QjytzTayTa
While Singh says he was able to get into the event and back to his vehicle “without any particular issue,” he pointed to the protest as an example of increasing polarization in Canadian politics.
“There is a level of polarization that is going on in politics which is troubling,” he said. “It shouldn’t be that someone has to be physically trained in martial arts and be able to deal with conflict to be a politician.”
He added that, while it’s “absolutely necessary for people to express dissatisfaction,” his experience was “something really troubling.”
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“We should be able to disagree as a society, respectfully, maybe even angrily, but it doesn’t have to come to the point where it’s getting so polarized that people’s safety can be at risk and people are feeling these types of threats,” Singh said.
Singh added the incident made him “really worried” about his team.
“We want to encourage people to participate in politics, we want people form all walks of life to participate,” he said. “We don’t want to create a climate where it is dangerous to be in politics, where people feel their safety is at threat, or their team’s safety is at threat. That should never happen. It should never get to that point.”
Nicole Comber, owner of Peterburgers, and others from their “Hold Fast” gang came out to yell at @theJagmeetSingh in Peterborough today — and give a message that he is “not welcome”.
“There is a responsibility that politicians play who purposefully inflame these divisions or purposefully spread misinformation that heightens the tensions,” Singh said. “Those who things that we can stop doing, I think that we have to stop doing.”
“There is a point where expression of anger gets into a position of hatred or violence. There’s no place for that in Canada. It’s completely wrong.”
Despite previous incidents involving Asseltine and Comber, including a raucous grand reopening celebration of Peterburgers in April that led to charges under the city’s noise by-law, there was no police presence during the protest.
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The day after the protest, Peterborough police posted on Twitter they were unaware Singh was in Peterborough and had received no calls for service.
“It’s disheartening to hear as we know most residents are respectful and these few are not reflective of our community,” police wrote.
PPS wasn't aware NDP leader Jagmeet Singh was in Ptbo
Since learning of the event officers reached out to Mr. Singh to discuss as there were no calls for service
It's disheartening to hear as we know most residents are respectful & these few are not reflective of our community
Several people took to Twitter to condemn the protesters’ behaviour, including Ontario NDP leader Andrea Horwath, who wrote Singh and Deck “deserve to live and work freely, without intimidation.”
So many times I've watched my friend @theJagmeetSingh meet hate with grace — just like he and our candidate Jen Deck did in Peterborough.
But they shouldn’t have to. They deserve to live and work freely, without intimidation.
On Wednesday evening, Singh posted his “thoughts and reflections” about his experience in Peterborough on Twitter, thanking everyone who reached out to him about the incident.
“I want to say especially say to the people of Peterborough — I have visited many times and I know your community is filled with good people who want the best for each other,” he wrote, adding later “Peterborough, I love you.”
Thank you to everyone that has reached out to me after yesterday’s incident in Peterborough.
Peterborough's Great Gilmour Street Garage Sale is set to return on May 28, 2022. The event was last held on May 25, 2019 and has been cancelled for the past two years because of the pandemic. (Photo: Linda McIlwain)
After a two-year absence due to the pandemic, Peterborough’s biggest and most popular garage sale is set to return on Saturday, May 28th.
The Great Gilmour Street Garage Sale sees residents of the entire length of Gilmour Street — from Park Street to Monaghan Road — participating in the sale, often with additional sellers west of Monaghan and some on Homewood Avenue and Burrows Street.
While there’s been no official announcement, a couple of residents have told kawarthaNOW the event is going ahead this year.
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First held in 1990, the sale takes place on the morning of the Saturday following the Victoria Day weekend beginning at 9 a.m. (although some people have been known to show up early) and runs until 1 p.m.
While the weather for the sale has traditionally been excellent, there’s always a chance it will be rained out. The rain date is Sunday, May 29th from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
The types of items you can find are what you would expect an any garage or yard sale: furniture, clothing, books, CDs, sporting equipment, paintings, bikes, appliances, electronics, baked goods, and more. But because so many residents participate in the sale, there’s a huge selection and the opportunity to find unusual, unique, or even rare items.
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Prior to the pandemic, thousands of people came out every year to the Great Gilmour Street Garage Sale to find both regular and unique items at bargain prices, or to support the many non-profit organizations that also set up shop during the sale to raise funds.
In the past, organizations involved in the sale have included the Peterborough Symphony Orchestra, The Parkinson Society, the Multiple Sclerosis Society, Taoist Tai Chi Society, and many more.
There’s no website or consolidated listing of all the sellers and charities who are participating in the Great Gilmour Street Garage Sale. While there is a Facebook group and a Facebook page, neither have been updated recently.
kawarthaNOW will update this story when more details become available.
Located at the Lakeview Arts Barn in Bobcaygeon, Globus Theatre is a registered not-for-profit charitable organization mandated to provide professional theatre to the local Kawartha Lakes community and visitors. (Photo courtesy of Globus Theatre)
Globus Theatre in Bobcaygeon has announced the launch of a $2 million capital campaign to purchase the Lakeview Arts Barn — and has already raised $1.1 million towards that goal.
The professional theatre company’s co-founder and artistic producer Sarah Quick made the announcement during a virtual media conference on Wednesday (May 11).
The distinctive renovated barn, known as the LAB, became the home of Globus Theatre three years after Quick and her husband James Barrett founded the theatre company in 2003. As well as being the stage for Globus Theatre productions, it also served as a venue for events such as weddings, corporate functions, fundraisers, and more.
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However, while Globus Theatre — as a registered charitable organization — sustained itself during the pandemic through relief funding and donations, the commercially operated Lakeview Arts Barn faced significant financial challenges.
“We lost all of the events that keep things going — that pay for the operations along the way,” Quick said. “We remortgaged in 2020. We ended up quadrupling our debt over the course of the two years. The relief funding that came for Globus, and the ability to be able to raise funds because Globus was a charity, obviously that was not available to the LAB.”
“We knew when the third lockdown hit at the beginning of the summer of 2021 that James and I were not going to be able to sustain this financially. We knew that we had to put the LAB on the market.”
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Quick explained that Globus considered three options: selling the building to a new owner and becoming a tenant, talking with the municipality about its plans for building a new cultural centre, and launching a capital campaign to pay off the mortgages, own the building outright, and complete some repairs.
After consulting with other theatre companies, industry experts, and supporters, and considering the shortcomings of the other options, Globus decided launching a capital campaign was the right solution to secure the theatre company’s future.
“We researched capital campaigns and we found out that, in order to launch a capital campaign, one should have half of the amount already secured in order to do that,” Quick said.
“This is where the amazing news comes in that makes the tears turn happy,” she added, her voice cracking. “When we asked our donors, we received a pledge of $1 million in order to launch our capital campaign.”
After announcing the pledge at a donor town hall a couple of weeks ago, Globus received an additional pledge of $100,000 — bringing the total raised to date $1.1 million of the $2 million goal.
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“It’s a massive undertaking but, looking positively, we’re halfway there,” Quick said. “It means that rather than worrying about running a venue, we can concentrate on running a theatre.”
In response to a question, Quick said the building would be renamed after the theatre company as no donors so far have requested naming rights.
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