Council to look at reinstating Thunder Bay Waterfront Development Committee

One city councillor in Thunder Bay, Ont., wants to see the Waterfront Development Committee restarted, to try and spur on development.

Brian McKinnon said the previous committee, which was disbanded after the completion of construction at Prince Arthur's Landing, was a good source of information and point of contact for groups and businesses that wanted to help improve the area.

Since the group was disbanded a few years ago, McKinnon said, proponents of ideas, such as trail networks that could lead all along the lakeshore to Mission Marsh Conservation Area, are having difficulty in reaching the right parties at the city.

"There are things starting to happen. People don't have a connection, they don't know who to go, to enact what they want to see unfold," McKinnon told CBC News.

While the idea is to make it easier for groups with an interest in the waterfront to connect with the city, McKinnon said it might also spur some quickly needed improvements, like sprucing up the docking site at Pool 6 for cruise ships.

The city is expecting Viking Expeditions to sail through Thunder Bay's waterfront seven times in 2022. McKinnon said that area will be the first impression for thousands of visitors who will travel through the area.

The new group would be responsible for vetting waterfront concepts before they are brought to council, McKinnon said. The committee would oversee all the waterfront, and not just a specific area. The previous group was only overseeing development of Prince Arthur's Landing.