Parks to finish review of Maids lease by Oct. 1

From the Niagara Falls Review: Members of the Niagara Parks Commission will complete a government- ordered review of its lease with the Maid of the Mist Steamboat Co. “no later than Oct. 1,” chairman Jim Williams says. Commissioners met last week to consider advice from the provincial government and their own legal staff, and to…

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$850 K for historic Hydro landmark

From Niagara This Week: A total of $850,000 will soon be pumped into the historic Toronto Power generating station. Niagara Falls MP and Justice Minister Rob Nicholson unveiled a Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada plaque Friday, in addition to announcing the federal government will chip in a $425,000 infrastructure investment as part of…

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Maid of the Mist decision facing review

From the Globe and Mail: The Niagara Parks Commission, the secretive provincial agency that manages the Canadian side of Niagara Falls, has been ordered to review its decision to extend the Maid of the Mist’s monopoly on boat tours of the world-famous landmark. The Queen’s Park directive follows two government-ordered reviews of the agency launched…

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Report on NPC suggests change in business practices

From the Niagara Falls Review: There will be “significant recommendations” about the way the Niagara Parks Commission is run and how it does business when a government-ordered review of the commission and an audit of its purchasing and leasing policies is released, Niagara Falls MPP Kim Craitor says. “It’s moving along. Compared to what was,…

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Minister lukewarm on city’s Parks plan

From the Niagara Falls Review: The Ontario government isn’t in a hurry to act on free advice from Niagara Falls council about how the Niagara Parks Commission should run. Tourism Minister Monique Smith confirmed her staff received a July 9 letter from city hall that outlines a resolution councillors passed calling for openness at the…

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Three Parks posts refilled -but no word on Gale’s spot

From the Niagara Falls Review: The province has reappointed three Niagara Parks Commission members whose terms were ending -but not Bob Gale, the controversial member whose term expired in February. “We wanted to make sure the board remained functional. We were concerned about that,” Ontario’s Tourism Minister Monique Smith said in an interview Tuesday. Niagara…

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Border requirements impact local tourism

From the Niagara Falls Review: The Canadian tourism industry is experiencing its longest period of decline since the 9-11 terrorist attacks almost eight years ago, according to Statistics Canada report released Monday. But if the recent experience of the Niagara Parks Commission is a good indication of what’s happening elsewhere in Niagara, Ontario and across…

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