A News Commentary by Niagara At Large reporter/publisher Doug Draper
Posted July 10th, 2026 on Niagara At Large
I would bet every drop of water rushing over the Horseshoe Falls every single second of the day that there was at least one Niagara Parks Commission representative at the town hall Niagara Falls NDP MPP Wayne Gates hosted this past Monday, July 6th at the Club Italia to address Doug Ford’s controversial plan to have a giant ferris wheel built on Queen Victoria Park lands near the brink of the Horseshoe Falls.
One amazing turn out at a town hall. photo courtesy of the Constitiuency Office of Niagara Falls MPP Wayne Gates
And if I am right, I am also willing to bet that this same Niagara Parks representative would have gone right back and told the Doug Ford-appointed Chair of Niagara Park’s board, Graham Coveney, something like; “Wow, you should have seen it. There were more than 700, if not a thousand people packing that town hall meeting and they don’t want a huge ferris wheel built on greenspace near the Falls. …
“And they are angry as all hell that Niagara Parks has not consulted with the public on this grotesque plan and that it has not already come out and made it clear to Ford that it violates everything the Parks Commission is supposed to be standing for since its founding in 1885 – to protect and preserve the Falls and the natural beauty of the greenspace along the Niagara River corridor.” Continue reading
NIAGARA-ON-THE-LAKE — The Migrant Workers Alliance for Change has launched a petition, also endorsed by the Niagara Community Legal Clinic, demanding a response to the death of Sinhue Garcia, a migrant farmworker killed while cycling home in Niagara-on-the-Lake. 
Every day, Ontario loses 319 acres of farmland. The Ford government wants to add 2,000 more to that number. Permanently. 
A Brief Foreword by Niagara At Large reporter/publisher Doug Draper – When news was released that the RCMP would investigate charges that senior staff in the Ontario Government of Doug Ford were working with Ford-friendly developers to pave over parcels of our precious Greenbelt lands, there were many at the time who seemed excited to hear this. But I must admit that this journalist was not one of them.
NIAGARA, ON — Niagara Geopark has launched a new website and Friends of the Geopark fundraising program to support its growing education, outreach, and stewardship work as the organization continues its path toward UNESCO Global Geopark designation.
GRIMSBY — The Ontario government has started construction on the Grimsby GO Station as part of its plan to fight gridlock, decrease travel times and support increased GO service to the Niagara Region. The province is using a new standardized design for the station to help reduce construction costs and speed up timelines. The new station will include one platform, 220 parking spaces, a bus loop and pick-up/drop-off areas.
The Niagara Falls Nature Club welcomes you to participate in leisurely walks as we enjoy the flora and fauna of Niagara. The walks are rated from 1 to 10: 1 is easy and 10 is strenuous. For more information or if you have any questions, please get in touch!
As much as we Canadians have every right to feel angry and to boycott products made in the U.S.A. and travel to the U.S. in response to all of the insults and threats the monster currently occupying what’s left of the White House has hurled against country, let’s remember at least two thing.
In that spirit, I am re-posting a video that I shared here a few months ago of a large stadium full of our American neighbhours singing ‘O Canada’ at a Buffalo Sabres hockey game. It happened when a young pop star, Buffalo-borne Cami Clune’s mike cut out during the beginning of singing our anthem and the mostly American crowd decided to take over singing it.
Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) has issued an orange alert for extreme temperatures in our region over the next few days. With the holiday happening tomorrow and many people planning to spend time outdoors, Niagara Region Public Health (NRPH) is reminding people to take precautions to protect themselves, their families, and their community during the extended heat event.
“Today, we celebrate each other. We are a nation of kind, compassionate, hardworking people, as remarkable and diverse as the places we call home all across Canada. Ours is a country that spans three oceans, six time zones, and ten million square kilometres of breathtaking landscape, built and bound by a great conviction: that we are strongest when we are united.
Posted by Doug Draper on June 30th, 2026 on Niagara At Large
NIAGARA AT LARGE Encourages You To Join The Conversation By Sharing Your Views On This Post In The Space Below and by sharing the Niagara At Large site at
A year ago on Canada Day, I mentioned here that I never saw so many Canadians expressing so much pride in our country since I remember experiencing as a young kid when our country turned 100 in 1967.
It was heartening to turn on a CBC Radio program called “Cross Country Check-Up” this past Sunday, June 28th and hear so manyCanadians call in and say they have stopped crossing the border to the U.S. and have stopped buyig American goods. Some of them said they have sold winter homes they owned in Florida.
Did Doug Ford ever hear the line, based on a good deal of reliable evidence gathered for decades all over North America, that “speed kills”?
QUEEN’S PARK — Official Opposition Ontario NDP Leader Marit Stiles has issued the following statement, after Freedom of Information (FOI) requests from The Trillium
(A Brief Foreword Note from Doug Draper at Niagara At Large – It does not surprise this journalist and Ontario resident that, according to the latest numbers by the reputable Angus Reid polling institute, Premier Doug Ford’s approval rating is now lower than any other premier in Canada and the approval numbers his political kin Donald Trump is receiving in many polls in the United States. What does make me wonder is that Angus Reid does not also mention Ford’s attack on our democratic and environmental protection institutions, including his recent move to exempt himself and his cabinet from Ontaro’s Freedom of Information legislation) among the reasons for his extraordinarily low rating.)
In Ontario, Doug Ford falls to a personal low after a quarter marked by both economic pressure and self-inflicted wounds. His government has continued to frame its agenda around protecting Ontario from U.S. tariffs, but that message has competed with a budget that is projecting year of deficits, as well as persistent affordability and health-care challenges. 
“Canada’s first-ever National Food Security Strategy will help grow and process more food here and put more Canada on Canadian plates – lowering costs, creating jobs, and building a food system that is more resilient, more competitive, and more our own.” – Prime Minister Mark Carney
Ottawa, ON – Today (June 9th, 2026), Private Member’s Bill C-232, An Act to amend the Corrections and Conditional Release Act (Maximum Security Offenders), introduced by Tony Baldinelli, Conservative Member of Parliament for Niagara Falls—Niagara-on-the-Lake, will conclude second reading debate in the House of Commons. Members of Parliament are expected to have a chance to vote for the legislation tomorrow.
Every morning, Ontario farmers tend the fields that put food on your table. But the Ford government has spent the past eight years selling off that same land to PC donors and rich investors to build more highways and sprawl.
Ottawa, Ontario – “On behalf of the Government of Canada, I congratulate Her Excellency the Right Honourable Louise Arbour as she formally assumes the role of the 31st Governor General of Canada.
NIAGARA, Ontario —The Niagara Jazz Festival is proud to announce the artist and presentation line-up for the 2026 Niagara Jazz Festival, taking place June 25 – 28 & July 4 – 5 in Niagara-on-the-Lake and St. Catharines.
This June 5th marks World Environment Day today – the 54th day of its kind since it was first established by the United Nation General Assembly in 1972 – but not that it appears this year that many people have noticed.
As Niagara anticipates growing over the next few decades, Niagara Region transportation experts are planning for an efficient and viable road network to move people and goods across communities to meet that demand and is asking for the public’s insight into developing this crucial blueprint.
“This milestone is not only about celebrating 150 years of service, but also about recognizing the essential role the Decew Water Treatment Plant continues to play in delivering safe drinking water to Niagara Region’s residents and businesses. We are very proud of Niagara Region’s water infrastructure and the expertise and dedication of our talented staff to provide reliable, world-class drinking water to all of our communities every single day.” – Phill Lambert, Director of Water-Wastewater Services 
From its humble beginnings delivering safe, reliable drinking water starting in St. Catharines in 1875, the Decew Water Treatment Plant has grown and evolved into a state-of-the-art facility that now supplies millions of litres of world-class drinking water to tens of thousands of Niagara residents every day. 
As another scorching summer begins and gas prices continue to soar, support for a tax on Big Oil’s windfall profits is also heating up.
“AI is here. The question is whether it will improve the lives of all Canadians or benefit only a few. AI can shorten our emergency room wait times and make a small business more competitive, if it is governed by Canadian values with a clear goal of improving the lives of all Canadians. That’s why we need an ambitious new strategy: AI for All.”— Mark Carney, Prime Minister of Canada
We know you’re busy, but suspect you’ll want to weigh in on a proposal that could significantly weaken the laws that protect our water, human health, species at risk, and future generations.
(A Brief Foreword by Doug Draper at Niagara At Large – So you think that the climate crisis doesn’t impact you? If you pay property and car insurance, please read the following, then go back and have a conversation with those who argue that climate change is not a problem or it is a hoax.)
Canada’s fundamental insight is that unity does not require uniformity. We believe our differences are strengths to be nurtured, not risks to be managed. We believe that faith, language, heritage, and tradition are not concessions to citizenship – they are expressions of it.
The Bruce Springsteen concert I went to in Brooklyn last week was unlike any concert I’ve attended in decades. It was far more than a fabulous, joyous concert; it was also an inspiring resistance event.
WE INVITE YOU TO JOIN US FOR OUR NEXT OUTING!
VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Presenting the first encyclical of his pontificate, Pope Leo XIV warned that artificial intelligence must be “disarmed,” urging governments, tech leaders and society to confront the rapidly growing technology before it weakens human relationships, critical thinking and peace itself.
A Brief Commentary by Doug Draper
Trump seems to be circling the drain, according to many recent popularity polls conducted in his country, but the numbers show there are still tens-of-millions of hardcore supporters who are declaring their willingness to follow him right up to and through the gates of hell.
He was, among so many of those he performed with, from Charlie Parker and John Coltrane to Thelonious Monk and Miles Davis, one of the very last of the great legends from one of the greatest eras of jazz music standing.
For many primary care providers in Niagara, navigating referral pathways and accessing timely specialist care can be challenging. Over the past four years, SCOPE Niagara has helped change that by connecting physicians to real-time specialist advice and support.
Toronto – On World Biodiversity Day, (this past May 22nd, 2026) a new report published by Ontario Nature demonstrates the critical role that the Greenbelt plays as a safe haven for some of Ontario’s most vulnerable species.
Official Opposition Ontario NDP Leader Marit Stiles (and some of her NDP members) held a press conference this May 22nd; where they introduced a bill to scrap the HST on all food and drink
“Statement by the leaders of Canada, Australia, France, Germany, Italy, New Zealand and the United Kingdom on the situation in the West Bank.
Niagara At Large 