Wasaga.Net - An Insider's Guide to Wasaga Beach

LATEST NEWS - Summer 2009

SUMMER 2009

Before you know it the abhorrent weather will cease and we'll be heading to the Beach. So how's the summer season of 09 shaping up. Last summer was certainly a mix promise and disappointment. Bad weather was tempered with the promise of beachfront re-development.

If you don't already know the beachfront area in and around Beach Area 1 & 2 are in the middle of a overhaul. The rather small fire the winter before conveniently cleared a large swath of land for something new.

I'm happy to say that things are starting to look promising. The addition of the Wasaga Dome seems to be a great start. You know, it one of those geodesic structure comprised of circles and triangles made of aluminium I think, covered in a soft waterproof (I assume) fabric. At first the structure seems a little small for events or shows of any magnitude but it will hold 750 - 1000 people for entertainment purposes.

Wasaga Dome

The Wasaga Dome got off to a great start despite the delays in construction. "IGNITE", a a high-energy human-powered 'new circus' show featuring high-flying aerialists, death-defying acrobats, blazing fire performers and thrill-seeking daredevils was the first to show to entertain us and at the same time highlight what a unique venue the Dome is. Being a dome there is no need for tent poles or support beams which means great sight lines for all. And, without hard surfaces the acoustics are not that bad at all.

As well as "IGNITE" the dome will be home to "Classic Movie Wednesdays" and "Absolute Comedy Thursdays". Now, if they would add some quality shows of the musical nature we'd be cooking. It's the perfect venue for Jazz concerts. Can you imagine seeing some top Jazz performers in a 1000 seater with great sight lines and acoustics? I can dream can't I.

It'll be a while before the re-development is complete, years possibly. But even I, a confirmed cynic, sees promise for the new beachfront in Wasaga Beach. With re-development in the works and hopefully a little co-operation from Mother Nature, the summer of 09 will be just fantastic.

THE NEW MAIN STREET AND
WHAT'S FOR DINNER

As well as the re-development of the Beachfront, Main Street (the street leading to the Beachfront if you are entering Wasaga Beach from the east) is also in a state of re-development. I'm saddened to say we now have a strip of insipid, innocuous and banal chain restaurants.

Which brings us to a very important subject. Food in Wasaga Beach. Let's be honest. The food in Wasaga Beach is nothing to rave about. When the residents are praying for a Swiss Chalet as an answer to their culinary prayers the bar isn't exactly set very high.

An old favourite, The Dyconia Resort Hotel, has new owners after being run by The Hutchinson family for around 50 years. The dining room at the Dyconia was always a comfortable and reliable place to get a good meal. Hopefully the new owners will continue with that tradition.

Still no Starbucks but we did see the opening of "The Longbeach Cafe" which is a beautiful cafe/sandwich spot in the main beach area. Espresso, Cappuccino and Internet access. Sounds like my kind of place. Hopefully the Longbeach Cafe will return this summer.

I'm not sure why the business people who come to beach to pursue their entrepreneurial dreams are so short sighted when it comes to food. We don't need another Pizza place. Maybe a good one but not just another same same.

Let's end this article on a positive note. Now open, across the street from the Riverbend Plaza, (you know, across from MacDonald's and Tims by the bridge sort of) we now have "THE HOT VEAL HUT". Yes, yes yes. Hot Veal Sandwiches, Meatball Sandwiches and more. Just like, sort of, "San Francesco", Commisso Bros. etc. It's a great addition to the food scene here in the Beach. I've already eaten there on many occasions and it's been delicious every time.

And, in the east end of town we have a new eatery and entertainment venue called Cheerleaders. I haven't had a chance to have lunch or dinner there yet but early reports are that the food is very good.

Ok, now where's the Starbucks?

WASAGA BEACH MUSICIAN
TACKLES SOLO CD RELEASE

It is safe to say that Wasaga Beach is not a haven for world renown musicians with CD releases from Canada to Japan and more than a dozen countries in between. However it is home to Toronto born bass phenom, Rick Lazaroff.

Rick Lazaroff made his name as one third of Toronto's deluxe Hard Rock trio, "Santers". With "Santers", Mr. Lazaroff toured throughout the world and released many recordings to the delight of fans of this genre. Not surprisingly though, Rick has recorded and performed in many styles, including a CD with Turkish Jazz guitarist, Orhan Demir. The common thread throughout his career has been a support role, playing material penned by others.

Part 2 is here. Groovistico Ballistico is here. Mr. Lazaroff's solo CD is not in the Hard Rock or Jazz genre. It is a move towards a serious and experimental genre that could possibly be described as improvised music with elements of Jazz, Rock, Industrial, World and Ambient. The CD is available on his Webpage.

Recently Rick is rehearsing and recording with a new Hard Rock band (name pending) signed to Cyclone Records. With Earl Johnson (Moxy) on guitar, Russ Graham (Killer Dwarfs) providing the voice and hard hitting' Morgan Evans (Lee Aarron) on the skins the band will be rocking the globe in 09.

LIVE MUSIC RETURNS TO THE BEACH

(An amendment to the past article, "Where did all the bands go?")

There was a time when live music was King in Wasaga Beach. From the west side with "The Beacon" to the main Beach area with "The Dardanella" , you weren't a nightclub unless you had a good band. Well the last few years with new ownership at the Dard and a seemingly waning interest in live music in general for the 20 something crowd there has been an absence of live bands performing here in Wasaga Beach.

It's not as if some promoters and bar owners haven't tried. The Wasaga Beach Bluesfest which took place a few years back was a disaster. Even with world renown Blues Bands and artists such as "Roomful of Blues " and "Taj Mahal" nobody seemed to care. I went to the main beach area to check out "Roomful of Blues" during Bluesfest. A bright sunny warm day, proper staging, a top notch PA, and an excellent band. Well my self and about a dozen other people were treated to a very greasy, groovin' performance by one of the world's best Blues Bands on the scene today. The beach was packed that day. The area inside the concert area was empty. I was dumbfounded. Why wasn't it jammed?

John Hutchinson, the former owner of the Dyconia who once had the downstairs bar at the Dyc rocking and rolling with live bands finally gave up booking live bands a few years before selling the resort. One summer he brought in Randy Bachman and David Gogo, two Canadian guitar greats. There was about 30 people for Bachman and 6 people for Gogo.

It seems the young crowd today are more interested in canned music played by DJ Droopy Drawers. "Oh he's good. I love the way he presses play on the CD player". Personally I don't get it. I'll take a live band with real musicians any day.

Get to the point already! Well, a new eatery and bar and purveyor of entertainment may have come to the rescue. We have a new venue on the east side of town just across from Wal-Mart that has jumped in feet first to the live entertainment scene.

CHEERLEADERS to the rescue. Like I said, just across from Wal-Mart at 707 River Road West, unit 5. They have a Jam night on Wed. night hosted by the very capable guitarist/vocalist Wayne Buttery and live bands on Saturday night. Entertainment schedules are usually subject to change, so, for up to date info about their live music schedule surf on over to their Website for the whole enchilada.

They also have a great menu, 13 different brews on tap, theme nights and more. A welcome addition to entertainment starved Wasaga Beach. And, a new place with good food is always a good thing here in the Beach.

CLEAN AIR OR POLLUTED
TAKE A PICK

One of the hottest topics in the last municipal election here in Wasaga Beach was the open fire burning by-law. There has been a huge problem with air pollution here in the Beach fuelled by the unchecked and out of control bon-fires in hundreds of back-yards during the summer. Add to that the 5 or 6 Trailer Park / Campgrounds which exist within the boundaries of Town and you have a recipe for very unhealthy air.

Many candidates professed to be very concerned about the environment and promised that if they were elected the health of the people and the environment would be a top priority. First on their list was to revamp the open fire burning by-law as to tighten up the rules concerning what would be allowed and what times it would be allowed and where it would be allowed.

Surprisingly, the by-law was tightened up a bit but not enough to satisfy those who are truly concerned about the environment. Some councilors had to be dragged kicking and screaming into the 21st century in regards to a new way of thinking when it comes to protecting the health of our residents and our environment. Councilor Connie Gray fought almost every change to be implemented showing a total disregard to clean air and the health of our children and senior citizens who are most affected by air pollution.

The are however provisions for a nuisance clause which will curtail bonfires that are infringing on a person's right to breath clean air. There is also a clause restricting the time that bonfires are allowed. ! a.m. is the cutoff time for fires in the evening/morning.

Most important is that on days that Environment Canada have issued a Air Quality Warning, fires will be prohibited. This clause was a no brainer but not a sure thing. Some of the Councilors curiously think that clean air means a hit in the pocket books for local business'. Such archaic thinking is the stumbling block to clean air and good health.

20 years from now people will look back and laugh at the ignorance of the Town leaders that allowed such pestiferous behaviour to exist.

UPDATE - Curiously, the clause in the new by-law that prohibits burning when an air quality advisory is issued is flawed. The Town chose that the air-quality advisories published by Environment Canada would be the measuring stick for restricting said fires. However it is the Provincial Government that issues those advisories for this area. Therefore they have the loophole of letting the fires burn even when the Provincial Government has issued a warning that has severe impact on the health of the residents and visitors to Wasaga Beach. Get it right. Place restrictions so as to fix the problem once and for all. As I've inferred before, the local municipal politicians are not really concerned about the environment or pollution problems that we face here in Wasaga Beach. Shame on you.

JUST A SHORT DRIVE AWAY

WE'RE NOT FAR AT ALL!

Wasaga Beach is conveniently located 1 1/2 hours from Toronto. Tourists from all over the world travel to the shores of Nottawasaga Bay, to stroll along 14 kilometres of white sand beach, swim in clean warm waters and enjoy the panoramic mountain views across the Bay.

Wasaga Beach has a good variety of accommodations and restaurant choices. Throughout the summer there is a different event almost every weekend, lots of choices for evening entertainment and an endless variety of summer sporting activities.

With all said the star of the show is definitely The Beach. The water is shallow enough to stroll out for what seems forever. The waves on a windy day are a blast. And the sunsets are magnifico! There is no better place to go in the summer than Wasaga Beach. Over two million people every summer will agree.

Thanks for visiting wasaga.net. Drop back often as this site will evolve. Into what were not sure. For now it will provide some handy info for those planning a visit to Wasaga Beach.