Amherstburg Open Air Weekends May 30 To August 31, 2025

Get ready for fun as Amherstburg Open Air Weekends return in 2025!

Recently awarded Best Street Festival in Tourism Windsor Essex Pelee Island’s Best of Windsor Essex Awards 2025, the 14 weekend event is back, and it’s bigger than ever.

The weekly events run from Friday at 3 p.m. until Sunday at 8 p.m. in the downtown core of Amherstburg.

Find everything you need in our Open Air streets from craft beer, gourmet popcorn, cotton candy, frozen yogurt, gelato, baked goods to ice cream, satisfy your long awaited craving for delicious drinks and desserts from your favorite Amherstburg eateries.

Shop Amherstburg’s amazing local businesses for clothes, accessories, home decor, jewellery, shoes, candles, classic and new author books and more!

This year, there are MORE themed event weekends to spice things up!

Whether you’re a foodie, art enthusiast, or music lover, there’s something for everyone. Whether you’re a long-time resident or a first-time visitor, Open Air Weekends are a must-attend event for all ages.

Additional vendor market opportunities have been introduced at Open Air! Join us for Friday Markets, and NEW this year are Weekend Markets that will take place on Friday thru Sunday on select weekends.

• Friday Market Dates: May 30, June 6, June 27, July 4, July 11, July 25, August 8
• Weekend Market Dates: June 13-14 (Busker Weekend – no Sunday market); June 20-22 (Ribfest Weekend); August 1-2 AmherstPalooza Music Weekend – no Sunday market); August 15-17 (Farm Fest Weekend); August 22-24 (Latin Fest Weekend) and August 29-31 (Rest & Relaxation Weekend)

Learn more about Open Air Weekends, the 2023 Most Wonderful Event of the Year by Biz X magazine.

The post Amherstburg Open Air Weekends May 30 To August 31, 2025 appeared first on Biz X magazine.

John R. Park Homestead Maple Syrup Festival March 2024

The First Taste of Spring Maple Syrup Festival is back, and it’s sweeter than ever. Join this iconic celebration of Canadian culture at the John R. Park Homestead Conservation Area on March 9 & 10 and 16 & 17, 2024.

“Each weekend is distinctly themed, this year’s Maple Fest again offers outdoor fun and unique experiences at this sweet-tasting tradition and celebration of natural and cultural heritage,” says Danielle Breault Stuebing, ERCA’s Director of Communications and Outreach. “Early Settler maple making will be the focus of the John R. Park Homestead activities, with blacksmithing demonstrations, costumed interpretation, and the ever-popular maple taffy in the snow taking place each weekend.”

Families can participate in the Lumber Games, Lumberjack Costume competition, Boast-Worthy Beard and Moustache competition, Best Butter Tart competition and so much more. On Tasters’ Weekend, guests can enjoy samples of delectable maple products, explore the artisans’ tent and watch the best Backyard Maple Maker will be awarded. Each weekend features special hikes and hands-on activities, of course, the ever-popular Maple Market. A full slate of activities offered each weekend can be found online.

The Maple Trail returns, featuring nine local businesses with unique maple offerings during both Festival weekends. “Families can find unique maple baked goods, family-friendly maple food pairings, decadent food and wine specials and much more along the Maple Trail,” Breault Stuebing adds. “The #MapleTrail map will be available on the website by March 1.”

Admission to the event ranges from $6 – $8 for individuals and $30 for a family pass. ERCA’s seasonal pass also provides admission to this event, and all conservation areas and special events for the entire year. Advance ticket purchases are encouraged so you can skip the line!

For more information and to download the Maple Trail map, visit www.essexregionconservation.ca/maple. The Maple Festival is proudly sponsored by St. Clair College and the St. Clair College Alumni Association.

The Essex Region Conservation Authority is a public sector organization established by the Province of Ontario in 1973 and governed by local municipalities. For more than 50 years, it has delivered programs and services to further the conservation, restoration, development and management of natural resources in watersheds in the Windsor-Essex-Pelee Island region.

The post John R. Park Homestead Maple Syrup Festival March 2024 appeared first on Biz X magazine.

Ontario Supporting Local Festivals and Events

Ontario says it is investing $9 million through the new Reconnect Festival and Event Program to support municipalities and event organizers during COVID-19. This funding will be used to maintain public safety requirements and allow people to reconnect with their communities through online, drive-through and other innovative experiences. Organizers will be developing creative programs such as virtual Remembrance Day events, reverse holiday parades with drive-by static floats, drive-in music concerts and movies, holiday tree lightings and New Year’s Eve displays that light-up iconic buildings.

“COVID-19 has had an unprecedented and devastating impact on our local festivals and events. This important investment through the new Reconnect Festival and Event Program will continue to support Ontarians as they reconnect and experience all their local communities have to offer.” – Lisa MacLeod, Minister of Heritage, Sport, Tourism and Culture Industries at Ontario Place

Funding may be used for eligible expenses such as programming and production, promotion, mobile applications and website development, and implementation of health and safety measures.

The application period for the Reconnect Festival and Event Program runs from October 8 to December 1, 2020.

QUICK FACTS

• The Reconnect Festival and Event Program is open to organizers with a minimum $50,000 operating budget and the capacity to safely reconnect Ontarians with their communities.
• Tourism is a key economic driver in Ontario, supporting more than 400,000 jobs and generating over $36 billion in spending.
• This year, through Celebrate Ontario, the government invested $9.75 million to support more than 250 festivals and events in communities across the province, including Blockbuster events.

The post Ontario Supporting Local Festivals and Events appeared first on Biz X magazine.

Virtual Fair will keep Spirit Alive as 2020 Western Fair Cancellation Announced

Western Fair Association’s Board of Governors and management team announced today that the Association will cancel the 145th Western Fair, scheduled to take place September 11-20, 2020 until September 2021.

This announcement will come as no surprise, as COVID-19 concerns and restrictions on mass gatherings remain in place for the foreseeable future. Western Fair is but one link in a chain of many large and small fairs across Canada who have had to make the same difficult decision to protect their communities. The Canadian fair industry as a whole relies heavily on innumerable valued vendors and service providers who are also affected by these restrictions and closures and the fair cannot be delivered without them.

Western Fair Association CEO, Reg Ash, said “We knew we would have to make a decision sooner or later. Mass gatherings are restricted until phase three of the Province’s reopening plan, and there is no certainty that we would reach that phase by September. The reality of impending timelines required to prepare for and create a 10-day event of this size, and the fact that the COVID-19 virus in our region have no foreseeable end date, it became apparent that it would not be possible to mount our annual signature event this September.”

“As one of the Ontario’s largest agricultural societies, who also operates an annual award- winning major Canadian fair, it became concerning for our Board and management to see many major fairs across the Canadian circuit cancel as the pandemic unfolded. Their decisions were always made with the health and safety of their communities in mind, but our hearts went out to them as each announcement came. The decision to cancel was simple, but far from easy for the Association, and for the many staff and volunteers who are the lifeblood of the event,” – Ann Straatman, Board Chair, Western Fair Association

“This is no doubt a sad day for the Western Fair District, and families across our region. As difficult as this decision was, I applaud and admire the Western Fair District’s Board of Directors for putting public health and safety above all else. The Western Fair represents many things to many people in our region: family fun, entertainment, and the unofficial start of the fall season. During its 152 year history, the Fair has survived World Wars, economic catastrophes, and even pandemics. I have no doubt it will also outlast COVID19, and return better than ever before in 2021. I hope to see you there.” His Worship Ed Holder, Mayor, City of London.

Western Fair is so appreciative of the many people – guests, staff & volunteers, exhibitors, vendors, sponsors, service providers, community groups, entertainers and attractions, 4-Hers and farmers for their ongoing support. Not since World War 2 has the Western Fair ceased its operation, this is new territory for employees and volunteers who annually dedicate a great deal of passion, time and hard work to deliver the 10-day community celebration. There is sadness, at losing the 2020 Western Fair, but if our history has taught us anything, it is that we have survived major world events before, and we remain confident that we will again.

The cancellation of fairs and community celebrations of every kind will be missed this year, but to keep the Fair’s spirit alive for our patrons and guests that can’t be with us in person this fall, management and staff have been working behind the scenes on a Virtual Fair that will provide a selection of online competitions, summer fun contests, prizes, fair food offerings, entertainment, and agriculture education. The Fair looks forward to connecting with the community online throughout the summer and in September, for some traditional last blast of summer fun!

The post 2020 Western Fair Cancelled appeared first on Biz X magazine.

LaSalle Cancels Strawberry Festival

LaSalle held its first online Regular Meeting of Council on April 14. During the meeting, Town of LaSalle Council approved the recommendation to cancel the 2020 LaSalle Strawberry Festival due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The festival was scheduled to take place from June 11 to 14.

“It was a difficult decision, but necessary under the circumstances,” said Mayor Marc Bondy. “With the current restrictions in place and the unknown of when they may be lifted, we made the responsible decision to cancel. We are continuing to support the directives of the Windsor Essex County Health Unit and Province of Ontario to social distance and stay home.”

The Province of Ontario’s Declaration of Emergency was recently extended until May 12, and it is unknown when the restrictions will be lifted. At this time, many municipalities in Ontario are cancelling events until the end of June. Larger events like the Strawberry Festival require that things like entertainment and supplies be booked well in advance.

“Ordinarily, planning would be well in progress. Much of this planning involves confirming entertainment and vendors that often require deposits that may not be refunded if the festival is cancelled at a later date,” said Patti Funaro, Recreation Manager. Payments were made to only two vendors and the Town is working to have those payments applied as credits to future events.

The Culture and Recreation Department is in the process of contacting all vendors and entertainers to advise of the cancellation. The Town of LaSalle looks forward to the 2021 festival, scheduled for June 10 to 13.

The Culture and Recreation Department was also planning to announce the introduction of the Last Call Before Fall festival, scheduled for September 11 and 12. The event will be similar to the LaSalle Craft Beer Festival featuring local vendors and entertainment. The status of the event will be reviewed in the coming weeks with a decision about the 2020 event made in July.

The post LaSalle Cancels Strawberry Festival appeared first on Biz X magazine.