HomeMy WebLinkAbout2026-05-14Newcastle BIA MINUTES May 14th, 2026 www.villageofnewcastle.ca
1. Attendance: Janeen Calder, Carolyn Brooks, Tracey Yates, Marni Lewis,
Laura Knox, Valentine Lovekin, Doug Sirrs, Jim Norwood
Regrets: Theresa Vanhaverbeke, Lina Schmahl, Alyssa Crittenden, Jane
Black
2. Land Acknowledgement read
3. Meeting called to order at 9:00am
4. Chief Fire Prevention Officer Matt Muirhead and Fire Prevention Officer
Jeff Norris informed the BIA that fire prevention staff will be visiting the
downtown BIA businesses in May and June for fire prevention and
obtaining property owner contact information to schedule an inspection
appointment. They will be staring with retrofittable buildings and focusing on
compliance with ceiling fire separation requirements. If you would like to
reach out and schedule a time that works for you contact Matt at
905-260-0773 or Jeff 905-260-3165
CIP grants through Clarington are available should you require retrofit
upgrades and permit fees.
Property owners should have your annual inspections and provide records
if you have them.
5. Approval of April 2026 Minutes:
Motion by: Carolyn Brooks Seconded by: Janeen Calder
6. Business Arising From Minutes: n/a
7. President’s Report: n/a
8. Treasurer’s Report:
Current bank balance $67,574.08
9. Councillor’s Report: n/a
10. Committee Reports:
Safety & Decor:
Pole banners have been installed by James Printing. New Harvest Festival
and Santa Parade over the street banners have been ordered from James
Printing. Beaver Street planter boxes have been installed by Bloomfield,
hanging baskets should be up in the next couple of weeks.
Advertising:
Instagram -
Accounts reached - 2477
Accounts engaged - 893
Total followers - 2146
Views - 19,128
Top posts
Invest Clarington/BIA Apple banners 5837 views/
3319 reach
Durhamscope/BIA Spring Popup — 2297 views/
1400 reach
Busch Newcastle announcement - 2112
views/1141 reach
Da Taste Thank you to community -
2066 views/943
Reach
Facebook -
Followers - 4042
Post views - 49,240
Post engagement - 2303
Top Posts -
Pain the Village Red - 25,545
views/1334 engagement
Busch Newcastle announcement- 9271 views/
505 engagement
Spring Pop-Up announcement -
8293 views/ 347
engagement
Support biz working together- 1039
views/21
Engagement
Canada Day (Sunday, June 28, 2026):
They have received a $5000 Heritage grant, and a $5000 Soccer grant
through FIFA.
They will have a soccer theme in the parkette. The beer garden will be in
the Hall parking lot. They are getting a stage and are looking for a sound
technician.They are meeting next week to confirm a few more details.
Harvest Festival (Saturday, October 3, 2026):
Vendor application will be open in the next week.
Hall Lighting (Sunday, November 15, 2026): nothing to report
Santa Parade (Sunday, November 15, 2026): noting to report
Santa Breakfast (Sunday, December 6, 2026): Change of date due to a
conflict. If any business would like to take over running the event, I’d
be happy to walk you through it.
11. CBOT Report: n/a
12. Economic Development/Streetscape:
Seasonal patio applications are open, the Snug should have theirs set up
by the end of May.
The CIP draft should be ready by mid June.
The MAT tax was approved at the last Council meeting at 5%, going into
effect on July 1st, 2026.
13. Chamber of Commerce News:
The Home Show is Sunday, May 24th at the Newcastle Memorial Arena,
they have 61 confirmed booths. Signage and mail outs are going out to
promote the event.
The Chamber is growing again. Pre-covid they had 130 members, they
dropped to 84 members after covid and are now at 102 members. The
Chamber is a great option for small home base businesses with the benefit
of the Chamber Insurance they offer.
14. New Business:
The Library is hosting a Story walk in the Newcastle BIA. The Library will
drop off pages to participating businesses and come and pick them up after
the 2 weeks.
John Albi has large “Newcastle” letters that the BIA can have if they want to
make a move-able standing sign. We will discuss our options and see if
this is something we can have someone make for us.
15. Next Meeting: Thursday, June 11, 2026 at 9:00am.