Final report on future of historic Ontario fair coming this month

The final report on Scugog Township’s plans for the future of the Port Perry Fairgrounds will be presented at council this month, with a special council meeting scheduled for July 13.

Scugog hired Toronto consultants Darwin Pivot in September to look at potential future uses for the fairgrounds site, galvanizing the community who feared the township had plans to develop the lands, home to annual Labour Day weekend fair since 1886.

The Port Perry Agricultural Society has operated the fairgrounds and the Port Perry Fair since 1910 (the same year the township took over ownership) and residents began to get concerned about the fair’s future when the agricultural society’s lease wasn’t automatically renewed last year, with Port Perry residents making their feelings clear about the park remaining in public hands in a combative Scugog Council meeting in September.

The rhetoric surrounding the visioning exercise for the future of the fairgrounds has softened a bit since the release of Darwin Pivot’s interim report on the future of the site in early March, however, with all four draft conceptual concepts released in the spring retaining the fairgrounds outdoor arena, as promised.

Port Perry Agricultural Society President Paul Puckrin, who acknowledged earlier this year Darwin Pivot has produced a “comprehensive report” and laid out a solid process, said he was happy to see “overwhelming public support” for the annual Port Perry Fair in the report, as well as for maintaining the park as a public space “for all to enjoy.”

Some of the key amenities in the preliminary designs (besides preserving the fairgrounds arena) include:

• An urban farm and community garden productive open-space area that supports small-scale agriculture, shared gardening, and community gathering in a public and accessible setting
• A wooded ‘urban forest’ that provides habitat with indigenous species and creates spaces for passive recreation and enjoyment of nature
• A Hillside Amphitheatre gathering space integrated into the landscape for viewing performances, ceremonies, and community events
• A neighbourhood park

One concept (#1C) incorporated all four into the design, while the other three each integrated three of the four.

The final report of the visioning exercise will be held in the council chambers at 5:30 p.m. on Monday July 13.

Those wishing to delegate to this matter (provided they have not delegated on the subject in the past six months) must submit their request no later than noon on July 10.

Contact the clerk’s department with any questions or clarification by email at [email protected] or by phone at 905-985-7346.

The township has assured the agricultural society and the community that the Port Perry Fair – held annually on the Labour Day weekend – can continue at the fairgrounds, at least through this year.

More information about the project can be found on the Your Voice, Your Fairgrounds project page.