Wallenda to meet with Niagara Parks Commission officials on Thursday
From the Niagara Falls Review:
Nik Wallenda, the American aerialist who wants to walk across the Niagara Gorge on a tightrope, will meet with officials from the Niagara Parks Commission this week.
NPC chairwoman Janice Thomson told The Review on Monday that a meeting has been scheduled for Thursday between Wallenda and NPC senior staff.
The meeting will not be open to the public.
“It is an internal staff meeting,” Thomson said. “I will be there and our general manager and her senior managers who will discuss this project with him (Wallenda).”
Thomson expects the meeting will last at least two hours.
The Canadian Press also had a similar article called Daredevil to pitch Niagara Falls tightrope walk again
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Some Wallenda posts today
I know I’m behind, but I still wanted to post some articles about Nik Wallenda and his attempts to get approval to walk on a wire over Niagara Falls.
The rest of the posts today and at least one tomorrow will be on his recent trip to Niagara Falls Ontario to present to the Niagara Parks Commission.
Wirewalker to make pitch on Falls crossing
From the Niagara Falls Review:
Nik Wallenda is used to wowing people. Now he hopes he’s able to wow the Niagara Parks Commission.
Wallenda will have his chance in two weeks to finally convince Niagara Parks commissioners his proposal to walk on a tightrope across the Horseshoe Falls between Canada and the United States is the work of an experienced and talented performer, not that of a thrill-seeking stuntman.
The Florida wire walker submitted his request online to speak before the commission, a request interim chairwoman Janice Thomson granted for the Nov. 16 meeting, scheduled for 10 a.m. at Legends golf course.
“Separately, (Wallenda) sent me a letter with some of the details of how he would propose to do this walk,” said Thomson.
Related posts:
- Wallenda makes pitch to Canadians From the Tonawanda News: After his first meeting with officials...
- Niagara Falls high-wire plans could go haywire From the Toronto Star: A daredevil’s plan to be the...
- More on approval by NY for Wallenda to talk over Falls Yesterday I posted a few links to articles about Nik...
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Next tour boat operator could be named by year’s end: NPC
From the Niagara Falls Review:
The winner of the much-publicized bid to provide boat tours in the Niagara gorge could be named by the end of the year, says Janice Thomson, interim chairwoman of the Niagara Parks Commission.
“We’re currently still in the review process. There has been a lot of detail throughout the whole procurement process. The decision will last a long time and we want to make sure it’s done thoroughly,” said Thomson.
“But if you’re asking me to forecast, I’d say there will be an announcement before the end of the year.”
Related posts:
- Boat tour procurement process ‘free from any apparent bias’: Fairness commissioner From the Niagara Falls Review: The Niagara Parks Commission has...
- Deadline for boat tour bid Monday (yesteday) (I know I’m late, but I still wanted to post...
- Boat tour evaluations being done in secret From the Niagara Falls Review: The Niagara Parks Commission is...
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NPC issues likely to be under the radar during provincial election
From the Niagara Falls Review:
One explosive issue — the Niagara Health System — continues to publicly manifest itself as candidates get ready to hit the provincial election campaign trail.
But decisions surrounding the Niagara Parks Commission’s board of directors and Maid of the Mist boat tour operation will likely continue to unfold out of the public eye.
Six provincially-appointed bureaucrats who sit on the parks commission board will not be replaced until at least November — a month after the provincial election.
Their term was originally set to end in May, but earlier this year, with outstanding business matters yet to be resolved, the board decided it wasn’t practical to change over the appointees.
Their term was extended until November.
And with the election campaign set to begin next week, a freeze on appointments to government boards and agencies is in affect, said Janice Thomson, interim chairwoman at the parks commission.
“The Public Appointments Secretariat has stopped making appointments to any government body until after the election,” said Thomson.
“So nothing will change on that front until after the election.”
Related posts:
- 4 Niagara Parks Commission members turfed From the Niagara Falls Review: The Niagara Parks Commission, which...
- Chan seeks clean sweep of board From the Niagara Falls Review: The Ontario government doesn’t want...
- Gale wants unbiased NPC investigation From Niagara This Week: The list of people to turn...
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Falls Parks: Canada Thrives, U.S. Struggles
From WNED-AM 970 NEWS:
On one side of Niagara Falls, state parks need $85 million in repairs while on the Ontario side millions of dollars are going into renovation of Old Fort Erie and the Laura Secord House.
WNED’s Mike Desmond talked with the Chairwoman of the Niagara Parks Commission, Fay Booker, about the difference.
This year, the commission will spend around $100 million (Canadian) on its capital and operating budgets, serving millions of visitors from Fort Erie to Niagara-on-the-Lake.
The Ontario agency is set up to pay for itself by raising money and keeping it.
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Booker takes NPC to heart: Niagara Parks chairwoman marks first year on the job
From the Niagara Falls Review:
On a sunny Saturday in March, Fay Booker surrounded herself with the next generation of plant experts – graduating students from the Niagara Parks Commission’s horticultural school. Their graduation ceremony recognized eight students in a specialized program whose labour keeps the Botanical Gardens attraction in shape.
“The Niagara Parks has an ability to get into your heart very quickly,” she told the budding horticulturists. Her speech was peppered with “we” and “our” as she talked about her vision of employees and commissioners working together as stewards of the natural parklands and historic sites the provincial agency is responsible for.
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- ‘Eyes on the road’ at NPC, chairwoman Booker says From the Niagara Falls Review: Running the Niagara Parks Commission...
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NPC to remove ‘unfriendly’ fence
From the Niagara Falls Review:
It’s not exactly tearing down the Berlin Wall, but the Niagara Parks Commission plans to remove the iron fence that funnelled visitors to the Table Rock complex into its gift shop before they could even get a closeup view of the Horseshoe Falls.
“This was a very unfriendly action, this fence,” chairwoman Fay Booker said in an interview Saturday, adding the commission’s own employees pointed out it was “not people-friendly.”
“Their sense was it’s how they’re fencing off the public.”
Removing big sections of it is part of a focus on the “re-beautification” of its park areas that will take place this spring, leading up to a “grand opening” on the April 30 weekend, Booker said.
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Boat tour evaluations being done in secret
From the Niagara Falls Review:
The Niagara Parks Commission is giving ‘top secret’ status to the proposals submitted for one of the most important business deals the agency will make. Bids to run boat tours on the Niagara River are under lock and key and being evaluated at a secret location by a team whose identities aren’t being released, said chairwoman Fay Booker.
“They are moving along as anticipated. They are on schedule. They have not encountered any specific problems,” Booker told The Niagara Falls Review.
Picking a company to run boat tours on the Niagara River — a move that could lead to a replacement for the famous Maid of the Mist — has been one of the most scrutinized decisions the government agency has ever faced.
Related posts:
- Competition for boat tour operator evolving, NPC says From the Niagara Falls Review: The Niagara Parks Commission will...
- Deadline for boat tour bid Monday (yesteday) (I know I’m late, but I still wanted to post...
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Bids received for boat tours below Falls
From the Buffalo News:
A deadline to submit proposals to operate boat tours from the Canadian shore below Niagara Falls passed Monday, but the number of bidders and the names of companies that submitted proposals will remain secret for now.
Niagara Parks Commission Chairwoman Fay Booker said the commission does not plan to release details about the proposals at least until after the commission has made its recommendation for what company should operate the tours.
“Once we finish the evaluation process, we’ll probably be able to do a bit of a summary report in terms of how many bids came in and who the recommended proponent is,” Booker said.
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- NPC projects continue under temporary board, Booker says From the Niagara Falls Review: Two of the big projects...
- NPC on target for boat tour competition From the Niagara Falls Review: The document that will spell...
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New manager by June, predicts NPC chairwoman
From the Niagara Falls Review:
It could be summer before the Niagara Parks Commission gets a new manager at the helm as the government agency begins the process to fill the shoes of its retired boss John Kernahan.
“I’m going to suggest the search process is going to take three or four months,” chairwoman Fay Booker said in an interview. “It can be into June before we have our person on site. That would be a guess of mine.”
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