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Love Art and Culture?Don’t Miss “Culture Grows Here”!

Have you ever felt chills of inspiration while listening to a performer sing? Maybeyou are a business owner striving to attract new customers? Then don’t miss outon what may be the greatest arts and culture networking event yet. This May 5 and6, Barrie hosts the Culture Grows Here Conference for enthusiasts, professionals,and leaders nation-wide to experience and discuss the powerful beneficial effect ofculture on our communities and to inspire change.“We have invited cultural managers, architects, business owners, developers,builders, municipal staff, arts organizations from across the nation to participateand learn about building the arts within their municipalities,” says Onalee Groves,City of Barrie’s Cultural Development Officer.Groves emphasizes that the conference is open to everyone. “There is a lot to learnfrom the workshop presenters and there will be wonderful opportunities to see theGibson Centre, enjoy the play “Tales of an Urban Indian”, watch the Orange PeelMorris Dancers, enjoy delicious food, chances to network, and there will be a fewsurprises!”Participants will have plenty of chances to network, share their stories, and learnhow breathing air into a new growing cultural economy can open doors for bothcommunities and individuals.For travelers, accommodations have been arranged at the Georgian College SummerSuites. Day 1 focuses on local delights, beginning at the McLaren Art Centre forafternoon entertainment and drinks, followed by a condensed version of Talk IsFree Theatre’s production of “Tales of an Urban Indian” during the drive to Alliston’sGibson Centre. At the Centre, participants will be guided through this “factory turnedfabulous!”, enjoy a 4 course meal and an exhilarating performance from the OrangePeel Morris Dancers.On Day 2, participants will be inspired by arts and culture professionals who lead theway in cultural economy development. They can choose from a series of workshopsby various presenters such as, but not limited to:

• Mr. Eddie Friel, former CAO of the Greater Glasgow Tourist Board that madeGlasgow Scotland a cultural capital of Europe;

• Janis Barlow, the project lead on the redevelopment of the Wintergarden andElgin Theatre project in Toronto;

• Kelly Hill, owner/operator of Hill Strategies Research, the leader in Canada onResearch for the arts.

While the conference aims to reunite like-minded individuals to share and learn fromone and another, it also presents a great opportunity for Barrie to showcase itsamazing community and cultural accomplishments.Since introducing a cultural plan in 2006, Barrie’s Department of Culture launchedmany new initiatives such as, annual grants to artists and art organizations; anannual arts awards program; an Arts Advisory Council; a permit process for streetperformers; purchasing a bank and renovating it into a 138 seat theatre, thenacquiring funding to renovate it into a new 200 seats space; and many workshopsthat support artists of all ages.“This is really important now as communities have realized they have to work smarter,using their knowledge to drive their economy,” says Groves. Culture as an economicengine is one of Barrie’s top 10 strategic priorities and a crucial component to therevitalization of our downtown core.The Conference is also a great opportunity for sponsors who want to tie theirbusiness name to this exceptional nation-wide cultural event. Interested vendors areasked to contact the Department of Culture before all opportunities are gone.Don’t miss out on this great event. To find more details and attend the Culture GrowsHere Conference or to inquire about sponsorship opportunities, go to www.barrie.caand click on the Culture Grows Here icon.

City of BarrieCity of BarrieONTARIOONTARIO

Winter Festival AwardWinnerWinter Festival AwardWinner✮✮✮✮✮

BarrieWinterfest and Festival of IceBarrieWinterfest and Festival of IceThe City of Barrie received a 5 star rating in the Over 50,000 populationcategory of the 2009-2010 WinterLights Celebrations program. The annualawards ceremony was held in the City of Charlottetown in Prince Edward Islandon March 6th. WinterLights Celebrations is the winter edition of the popularCommunities in Bloom program and encourages all Canadians to join in theirlocal community events and activities, and to experience the beauty and thrill ofwinter. For photos and information about the program, visit www.winterlights.ca.

In the meantime, Barrie residents can get ready for the Communities in Bloomsummer program. Visit www.barrie.ca and watch for details.

Facebook • Twitter • Flickr • BlogsWednesday, March 31 from 7:00 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.

Angus Ross Room

This FREE programme is for adults who want to find out aboutFacebook, Twitter, Flickr, and other Social Networking websites.

Do you want to know about Wikis, Blogs, tweets and how to sharephotos on Flickr? Are you thinking about setting up an account?

This session will help you get a good idea of how adults and kidsare using the Internet to communicate in a whole new way.

No registration required. Limited to 50 people. Demonstration only,no hands on. For further information call 728-1010 x7020

Filing Income Tax OnlineTuesday, March 23rd from 7:00 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.

This session will include software options, access codes, fileformats etc. to meet the Canada Revenue Agency requirements.

This session is free drop-in session.All attendees are eligible to win free QuickTax software,

courtesy of Grand & Toy.

New Accessibility Standardsfor Customer ServiceWhat it Means for Your Business

Find out about the Accessibility for Ontarianswith Disabilities Act and the standards that impactwhat businesses and organizations must do to

break down and prevent barriers.

Wednesday March 24, 20107:45 – 9:00 a.m.

Southshore Community Centre205 Lakeshore Drive

Light refreshments will be served

TO REGISTER:Contact the Economic DevelopmentDepartment at (705) 728-9850 or

email invest@barrie.ca