Hailed the largest Santa Claus parade in the Ottawa Valley you can join thousands of spectators to watch hundreds of sparkling floats lit by LED bulbs as the Business Improvement Association hosts its annual evening parade on Saturday November 28th 2015.

The parade begins at 5 p.m. at Carambeck School and travels up the town’s main thoroughfare Bridge Street. After Santa’s sleigh passes through the town spectators can congregate at the Carleton Place and District Memorial Hospital for hot chocolate carolling and the annual Christmas tree lighting ceremony. Proceeds support the Lanark County Food Bank.

For further information information please call 613-257-8049 or visit www.downtowncarletonplace.com

Downtown Carleton Place will filled with the sights and sounds of Whoville at this years BIA Santa Claus parade.

“A Whoville Christmas”

Downtown Carleton Place is where the Grinch will find Christmas! The festive spirit will be making its way in and around and about the town. No, you are not mistaken, the Grinch who Stole Christmas and all that he has taken, will be downtown for this holiday celebration. The excitement is building and for a very good reason, as Santa will soon be here to celebrate the season.

I think the most likely reason of all may be that our hearts grow three sizes that day when we watch our Santa Parade. Oh the noise, the singing, the dancing, and more Santa will bring your way! There will be ribbons, tags, packages, boxes and bags that will adorn floats as they parade by.

Welcome Christmas, Bring your cheer, cheer to all from far and near! Maybe Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more! You will feel light-hearted for the season at the BIA Whoville Santa Claus Parade.

The Carleton Place BIA Whoville Santa Claus Parade is where we will stand heart to heart and hand to hand listening to singing and dancing welcoming the season’s meaning!

BIA Lambs Down Park Festival

Celebrate Father’s Day Weekend at the BIA Lambs Down Park Festival

in Carleton Place on Saturday June 20th from 10am to 3pm.

This is a non-gated event and is FREE to enter the grounds, demonstrations are FREE to view and food and merchandise vendors will be on site offering items for sale.

The Carleton Place (BIA) isn’t sheepish about letting people know that Carleton Place is the largest distribution centre for lamb’s wool in Canada!

In fact, the Canadian Co-operative Woolgrowers, located at 142 Franktown Road, grades and markets close to three million pounds of raw wool each year. In celebration of the town’s woolly existence, the BIA and the Woolgrowers are joining forces on Saturday, June 20th to host the BIA Lambs Down Park Festival. The BIA is working with the Wool Growers in an effort to bring awareness to the public about the tremendous heritage attraction we have in Carleton Place, the festival will run from 10 am until 3 pm on the Wool Growers property.

With wool being the fiber on which the festival is centered, the day will feature hands-on demonstrations of sheep herding involving working sheep dogs, sheep shearing and the spinning of wool. As well, in keeping with the festival theme, tours will be conducted of the Woolgrowers facilities. The Lambs Down Park Festival will be an opportunity for us to showcase some of the dynamics of Canada’s sheep and wool industry.

Other aspects of Carleton Place’s rich heritage will be on display at the festival. For instance, since the Woolgrowers occupy what was originally the round house and machine shops for the Canadian Pacific Railway, one display will track Carleton Place’s railway past.

There will be local fresh produce, petting zoo and pony rides, kids activities and more. Spectators can relax at a picnic table enjoy a bite to eat and a drink from great local vendors.

You will find unique demonstrators and displays with all kinds of interactive activities for the young and old to participate.

The BIA has created the Lambs Down Park Festival in an effort to bring friends, and family, of all ages together so that we can share in the heritage of the community. The BIA has had great success with family events and is inviting everyone to come out and enjoy the displays, lunch and entertainment.

Further details on the festival can be obtained by contacting the BIA at 613-257-8049 or by e-mail at cmcormond@carletonplace.ca.

Sheep shearing, spinning, weaving
Animal displays and petting zoo
Artisans, crafters & Local Farmers
Heritage demonstrations&displays
Delicious sweet & savory foods

On January 28, Paul Dulmage said at Carleton Heritage that the town’s downtown area is slowly transitioning to service-based businesses from being retail-based. The statement was spoken by the mayor during the Business Improvement Association’s Annual General Meeting.

According to the Carleton Place Mayor, in his opinion, not all businesses will be able to handle the change.

There were about 60 members from the Carleton Place’s business sector who attended the meeting in order to hear about BIA’s progress last year and this year’s plans.

For this year, the BIA plans to embellish the town’s downtown with flowers and new lightings. They also plan to continue with their marketing and promotions by organizing events in order to attract both residents and outsiders. One of those events is the planned Free Comic Book Day in May, sponsored by Heroes Lounge and the BIA.

The evening’s mood changed its course when the discussion of the budget came up. Partners Advantage Real Estate representative, Ralph Shaw, said that he wanted more support regarding the repayment of the main street budget.

He said that the BIA should not be responsible for paying 25 percent of the budget as opposed to what has been agreed upon. According to Shaw, the town council should “step up” and realize the importance of improving Main Street.

Dennis Burn retorted by listing down some of the projects that the town has helped. Surprisingly, Paul Dulmage stepped in to offer his opinion. He said that it is not the government’s responsibility to create a healthy retail core.

Ultimately, the BIA’s budget was passed with a 3 percent increase by a 16-4 vote.

The Business Improvement Association Board (BIA) of Carleton Place will have its annual General meeting this Thursday, January 28, 2010. Every business owner and estate owner in town is encouraged to join the activity. The meeting will be held at the Carleton Heritage Inn situated at Bridge Street. Registration will start at 6 pm.

After the dinner, which will start at 6:30 pm and will cost $10 for each BIA member, the association’s proposed budget for the year 2010 shall be presented to its members for their approval.

The Business Improvement Association stresses that those who are planning to attend the meeting should make their reservations for the dinner and pay for the fees in advanced. Guests were encouraged to RSVP before last Friday, January 21.

Guests who paid for the dinner can come and win two sets of tickets for Ottawa Senators Hockey games. These tickets are sponsored by The Record News EMC and Tomahawk Technologies.

For those non-members who want to attend the meeting, the dinner will cost $25.

The Business Improvement Association of Carleton Place started in 1979. Carelton Place’s business community appealed that the downtown area be made an improvement area by the use of provincial legislations and municipal bylaws. Thus, the BIA was organized.

Last January 13, at a breakfast meeting held at Carleton Heritage Inn, Ontario Provincial Police Inspector Ray Westgarth, Carleton Place’s top cop, requested that the town’s parents be more involved in rearing their children.

The meeting which dealt with topics such as vandalism, theft, child luring, was a joint convention conducted by the BIA and the Chamber of Commerce. Westgarth and Police Service Board members together with Mayor Paul Dulmage were guest speakers of the event.

In his presentation, Westgarth said that most of the parents in Carleton Place fail to fulfill their duties as parents. Furthermore, he said that he would be happy, but candid, when it comes to answering questions from attendants — which included the town’s business community.

The Inspector brought up the topic about parenting on several occasions. According to him, his officers had to deal with a lot of calls from parents who can’t control their children. He claimed that on some occasions, his officers had to act as the parents because the real parents fail to be more assertive. They preferred to be more of the child’s friend instead of being his or her guardian.

In the topic of child luring, Westgarth said that computers shouldn’t be placed on the youngsters’ bedroom. He said that parents who let their children have computers in the bedroom are not acting as real parents.

Westgarth also talked about his concerns about local school drugs and bullying. He said that the schools may have zero tolerance for bullying, but outside school premises, they don’t have much control.