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Happy Canada Day, Thunder Bay! 🇨🇦 Whether you're headed to the waterfront, catching the fireworks, or just enjoying a slow morning in the sun, we hope it's a good one. Here's what's happening around the city this week — stay cool out there.
In this Harbour Beat Issue…
🛒 Costco's Thunder Bay store is 'coming soon'
🏛️ A $39M FedNor fund to shore up aging community spaces
🪶 A Sixties Scoop exhibit honours survivors' stories
⚾ Border Cats spin a one-hit shutout of Duluth
🍓 Recipe of the Month: local strawberry shortcake
Trivia: What's the collective noun for a group of flamingos? (Answer at the bottom!)
Your week ahead in and around Thunder Bay — happy Canada Day! 🇨🇦
Wednesday, July 1 — Canada Day
Canada Day at Fort William Historical Park — 10 a.m.–5 p.m. · 📍 Fort William Historical Park, 1350 King Rd · A free day of music, dancing and family activities at the fort and Anishinaabe Encampment. · 📅 Add to Calendar
Canada Day on the Waterfront — 3–9 p.m. · 📍 Prince Arthur's Landing (Marina Park) · The city's free waterfront celebration with music, food and culture. · 📅 Add to Calendar
Canada Day at Thunder City Speedway — 7–11 p.m. · 📍 Thunder City Speedway, Lucy Drive · An evening of racing capped with Canada Day fireworks. · 📅 Add to Calendar
Thursday, July 2
Summer in the Parking Lot Live Music Series — 5:30–9:30 p.m. · 📍 Superior Inn, 555 Arthur St W · Free outdoor live music to kick off the long weekend. · 📅 Add to Calendar
Friday, July 3
The Wedding Singer — Immersive 80s Musical Dinner Theatre — 6:30–10:30 p.m. · 📍 Italian Cultural Centre, 132 Algoma St S · A chaotic, feel-good '80s musical dinner-theatre experience. · 📅 Add to Calendar
Brittany Lyseng LIVE at Campfire Comedy — 8–9:30 p.m. · 📍 Campfire Comedy, 117 Cumberland St N · Award-winning comedian (Just For Laughs, CBC, CTV) headlines the long weekend (19+). · 📅 Add to Calendar
Saturday, July 4
Thunder Bay Country Market — 8 a.m.–1 p.m. · 📍 Dove Building, CLE Grounds, 425 Northern Ave · The year-round Saturday market: local food, baking and makers. · 📅 Add to Calendar
Classic Days & Vintage Vendor Market — Sat–Sun, all weekend · 📍 3190 Hwy 61 · A weekend of vintage vendors, classic finds and community browsing. · 📅 Add to Calendar
Canada Day arrives hot. Environment Canada has a heat warning in effect for Thunder Bay, with a high near 31°C that will feel like the low 40s with the humidex, and an overnight low around 19°C. Expect plenty of sun for the waterfront — pack water, sunscreen and shade, take breaks from the heat, and check on older neighbours and pets (and never leave anyone in a parked car). Full forecast at Environment Canada.
Costco's Thunder Bay store is 'coming soon'
Costco's name is finally up in Thunder Bay. A large sign went up over the weekend at 1091 Central Avenue, near Golf Links Road, where crews have been clearing an eight-hectare site for a 160,000-square-foot warehouse store and gas bar. No opening date has been set — the developer suggests it could be as early as mid-2027 — but when it does open, it will be the first Costco between Sudbury and Winnipeg.
A $39M FedNor fund to shore up aging community spaces
Standing in the Canada Games Complex on Tuesday, Thunder Bay–Superior North MP Patty Hajdu announced more than $39 million over four years to help repair and upgrade community infrastructure across Northwestern Ontario — recreation centres, libraries, community halls and the like. Municipalities, First Nations and other eligible groups can now apply through FedNor, with priority going to shovel-ready projects that create jobs.
A Sixties Scoop exhibit honours survivors' stories
Ahead of Indigenous Survivors Day, a moving multimedia exhibit at the Baggage Building Arts Centre Galleria on the waterfront shares the first-hand stories of 12 Sixties Scoop survivors through text, photos and video. Titled Bi-Giwen: Coming Home, it is hosted by the City of Thunder Bay with the Legacy of Hope Foundation, and it is open to the public on Canada Day from 3 to 9 p.m.
Border Cats spin a one-hit shutout of Duluth
Border Cats starter Matteo Pare nearly made history, retiring 18 Duluth Huskies in a row and carrying a no-hitter into the seventh before a lone double broke it up. He struck out eight in an 8-0 win at Port Arthur Stadium that closed out the first half of the Northwoods League season. The Cats are back home Tuesday against the Rochester Honkers — with fireworks to follow.
Recipe of the Month 🍓
Local Strawberry Shortcake
Nothing says a Northwestern Ontario summer like the first flat of fresh local strawberries. Pile them over warm, buttery homemade biscuits and a cloud of whipped cream for a red-and-white treat that's made for the Canada Day table.
Ingredients
2 cups flour · 3 tbsp sugar · 1 tbsp baking powder · ½ tsp salt
½ cup cold butter, cubed · ¾ cup milk (or cream)
4 cups fresh local strawberries, hulled and sliced · 2–3 tbsp sugar
1 cup whipping cream · 2 tbsp sugar · 1 tsp vanilla
Steps
Toss the sliced strawberries with the sugar and let them sit 30 minutes to draw out the juices.
Heat oven to 425°F (220°C). Whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt, then cut in the cold butter until crumbly. Stir in the milk just until a soft dough forms.
Drop 6 mounds onto a lined baking sheet and bake 12–15 minutes, until golden. Cool slightly.
Whip the cream with the sugar and vanilla to soft peaks.
Split each warm biscuit, spoon on the berries and their juice, add whipped cream, and cap it off. Serve right away.
Tip: No time to bake? Local bakery biscuits or a store-bought angel food cake work just as well — it's all about those fresh-picked berries.
Got a family recipe you'd love to see featured? Just reply to this email and send it our way.
Meme of the Day
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Trivia answer: A flamboyance. A group of flamingos is called a “flamboyance” — a fittingly flashy name for such bright pink birds.