Ahead of Bracebridge’s 150th anniversary in 2025, residents have pitched ideas ranging from a demolition derby to having students write about what Bracebridge means to them.
Deputy Mayor Brenda Rhodes is the chair of the eight-person Bracebridge 150 Advisory Committee.
Ahead of the March 6 meeting, residents were asked to submit their ideas with 34 submitted ahead of the Feb. 26 deadline.
Rhodes said the number of ideas they got exceeded the committee’s expectations. She added she appreciated the many heritage-based ideas focused on different aspects of Bracebridge’s century-and-a-half of history, including one proposal to detail the history of how policing was handled in Bracebridge prior to the introduction of the Ontario Provincial Police in the early 1900s.
While 2025 is still months away, Rhodes pointed out the town is working on a “tight deadline.”
She asked any businesses or individuals who want to take part in the year-long celebration to reach out. Rhodes said that includes any businesses that will be celebrating their own anniversary in 2025.
“If we can find organizations that want to take an idea then we’re more than happy to add it to the calendar,” she said.
Along with Rhodes, the other members are Couns. Barb McMurray and Don Smith, Jaden Hollingshead, executive director of the Bracebridge Chamber of Commerce, long-time Bracebridge Coun. Steven Clement, Evelyn Brown, Lea Kane, and Jeff Dewetering.
This was the third time the committee has met since it was formed in Dec. 2023.
