Happy holidays
The City of St. Catharines wishes everyone a safe and happy holiday. Because we know you will be busy celebrating the season with friends and family we've made all of the important City of St. Catharines holiday information easy to find online.
Click here for information about free skating, festive events, facility closures, a list of emergency contacts and more.
City hall, and some other City facilities will be closed Boxing Day (Monday, Dec. 26) and Tuesday, Dec. 27 and Monday, Jan. 2.
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Holiday fun at the museum
Lego, butter making, crafts, finger painting and more. The St. Catharines Museum and Welland Canals Centre has a full line-up of holiday fun children and families will enjoy from Dec. 27-30 and Jan 3-6.
Admission for museum holiday programs is by donation (pay what you can).
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|  Stop circling and start shopping
Just in time for holiday shopping, the City is offering free afternoon parking on weekdays from now to Friday, Dec. 30. Free parking begins starting at noon.
Free parking will be available at all City parking meters and hourly machined lots for up to three hours starting at noon. Parking meters and hourly machined lots are for short visits and have a three-hour limit.
Need more time to finish your shopping? Long-term parking is available at the Ontario Street and Carlisle Street/Garden Park parking garages.
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Purchase dog tags online
Is it time to renew your dog license? Go online to purchase tags for the family dog.
Visit stcatharines.docupet.com to set up an account, complete online dog profiles and even upload photos. The new system also allows residents to manage and update contact information and details about their dogs as well as access to DocuPet's lost pet network should their dogs go missing.
Click here
to learn more about keeping dogs in St. Catharines and dog licences.
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Give the gift of curling
Give the Gift of Curling - 2017 Scotties Tournament of Hearts
The 2017 Scotties Tournament of Hearts could be the perfect stocking-stuffer for loved ones who want to enjoy action and experience another event at the Meridian Centre.
Save $5 each for selected single-draw tickets to attend the 2017 Canadian Women's Curling Championship, Feb. 18-26 at the Meridian Centre. The sale will offer Opening-Day tickets (Draws 1 and 2) for $25, all-day Sunday (Draws 3 to 5) and Monday to Thursday evening draws for $20, and Monday to Thursday morning and afternoon draws for $15.
The remaining single-draw tickets, including playoffs, will go on sale on Jan. 5. Full-event passes ($369) and various mini packs, including for the closing championship weekend ($169) and the opening weekend ($79) are still available. Find the full schedule here:
www.curling.ca/2017scotties.
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Arts Awards nominations open
Save the date: the 2017 St. Catharines Arts Awards are set for Saturday, June 5 at the FirstOntario Performing Arts Centre.
Help us honour St. Catharines artists, residents and businesses by nominating them for an Arts Award in the following categories:
- Arts in Education Award
- Emerging Artist Award (2 recipients are chosen)
- Established Artist Award
- Making A Difference Award
- Patron of the Arts Award
Submit your nomination by midnight on Sunday Feb. 5.
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Winter swim registration now open
Registration for winter swimming lessons is open for St. Catharines residents.
Register online or in person during business hours at the St. Catharines Kiwanis Aquatics Centre, Citizens First at City Hall and the Seymour-Hannah Sports and Entertainment Centre.
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Festive shows at the PAC
Get into the festive spirit with holiday shows at the FirstOntario Performing Arts Centre including performances by John McDermott, The Niagara Symphony, The Little Prince and Max & Ruby in The Nutcracker.
Plus enjoy family film screenings such as A Christmas Story and Sing-a-long Sound of Music. Click here for a full listing of events and information. Tickets and gift certificates always make great gifts!
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Discuss dual duty councillor proposal Monday
Have an opinion about the City's dual duty councillor proposal? Have your say at a public meeting next Monday night.
At the request of Niagara Region, City Council will hold a public meeting to discuss the proposal, which would see six dual duty councillors represent residents on both regional and city councils and six councillors sitting on city council only.
The current system includes 12 councillors on City Council and six on regional council.
The public meeting takes place at City Hall Dec. 19 at 5 p.m., before the regular City Council meeting begins at 6:30 p.m.
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Via Train station preferred Go Hub: study
The VIA train station is the preferred location to serve a GO Hub for St. Catharines, according to a study by the Niagara Region.
City staff updated the mayor and council on progress of the study, which indicated the VIA station would serve nicely as the GO Hub because it's centrally located, connected to neighbourhoods by transit, cycling and walking routes, and could spur housing development and job creation nearby.
While the second phase of the study is underway, City Council directed staff to pursue improved GO Bus Hub amenities and schedules for periodic express Go Bus runs to the Burlington GO Train station with MetroLinx.
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New by-law to formalize by-law enforcement
City Council directed staff to prepare a written policy for enforcing City by-laws that formalizes standard practices currently in place.
The written policy will also define what 'frivolous, vexatious and vindictive' complaints are and how the City will deal with them. Council also delegated appropriate authority to the Director of Legal and Clerks Services for oversight.
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Other news
Affordable housing
City Council is calling on Niagara Regional Housing to consider St. Catharines older adult population when allocating affordable housing to families at its new building at 527 Carlton St.
Property tax breaks proposed for certain ethno-cultural charities
City Council referred a proposed 50 per cent property tax break for charitable ethno-cultural organizations that own property in St. Catharines to the Budget Standing Committee.
The grant would help charities that provide meeting spaces and other cultural services deal with rising property costs. The grant program would be managed under the City's St. Catharines Cultural Investment Program.
Fire master plan
City Council granted the Fire Master Planning Committee an extension until February to complete an extensive report for the City's Master Fire Plan.
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More council online
Council Highlights offers informal summaries of some of the recent decisions and business discussed during St. Catharines City Council meetings. The Office of the City Clerk provides a full recap of decisions and motions in its official minutes, available on the Friday after every St. Catharines City Council meeting.
Click here for City of St. Catharines council meeting agendas and minutes.
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Digital versions of the Garden City Current are available. Click here to read past issues.
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Dec. 19
City Council
6:30 p.m., City Hall
Click here to learn about other upcoming meetings.
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Click here to learn about construction projects happening in the City.
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