City matches Rotary Club of St. Catharines Lakeshore funding for installations in Charles Ansell Park

Ribbon cutting celebrates Peace Pole and water bottle filling station

The City of St. Catharines and the Rotary Club of St. Catharines Lakeshore have unveiled two new installations in Charles Ansell Gateway Park – a Peace Pole, and a water bottle filling station – two areas of focus for Rotary.

Unveiled during a ribbon-cutting ceremony on last Friday, The Peace Pole is an upcycled white PVC, four-sided pole with the message, “May Peace Prevail on Earth,” written in English, French, Japanese (to pay homage to the movement’s origins, which began in Japan in 1955) and Anishinaabemowin. The Peace Pole Project is a global movement, with poles installed on every continent in more than 200,000 communities. The Peace Poles serve as reminders to cultivate peace in thought, word, and action.

The Rotary Club of St. Catharines Lakeshore, which founded the 1.25-hectare park in 1999 to showcase the Welland Canal and the St. Lawrence Seaway, presented its installation proposal to the City, which fit the criteria for the City’s Parks Legacy Fund. The goal of the City fund is to match alternative sources of funding, such as donations, legacy giving, and community projects to renew and upgrade assets in City parks. 

The proposal also included a new water bottle filling station featuring both a bottle refill station and a drinking fountain, providing convenient access to drinking water for Welland Canals Parkway Trail users and park visitors. Located along the pathway adjacent to the north end of the parking lot, the station will be supported by wayfinding signage throughout the park to help visitors find it. By encouraging the use of reusable water bottles while ensuring access to drinking water for everyone, the addition also supports the City's strategic priority of environmental stewardship.

“We had previously partnered with the Rotary Club of St. Catharines Lakeshore on Charles Ansell Gateway Park,” said Morgan McAvoy, City Landscape Architectural Planner. “When we discussed with the Rotary Club their goals for the additions to the park, the community impact they wanted to make, and seeing the anticipated cost, it all aligned well with both our goals and the use of the City’s Parks Legacy Fund.”

The park, named after the founder of the Port Weller Dry Docks, remains the Rotary Club’s largest long-term local project. It features a viewing station, planting gardens, benches, walkways, interpretative fencing, a variety of marine artifacts, and parking lots. Port Weller Dry Docks donated the artifacts from old ship build retrofits, including a lifeboat, an anchor, and the St. Catharines-built John O. McKellar ships propeller. 

The Peace Pole and water bottle filling station installations are organic extensions of the park, driven by the Rotary Club’s commitment to Peacebuilding and Environmental Sustainability. 

“The Peace Pole is part of an international movement promoting peace, friendship, and understanding among all people,” said Coral Timms, Past President, Rotary Club of St. Catharines Lakeshore. “Displayed in communities around the world, Peace Poles serve as daily reminders that peace begins within each of us and grows through kindness, respect, and service. 

“The new water bottle filling station provides park visitors with convenient access to fresh drinking water while encouraging the use of reusable water bottles and helping reduce single-use plastic waste. Together, these projects reflect Rotary’s commitment to Peacebuilding and Environmental Sustainability, two of Rotary’s Areas of Focus.”

City Council approved the Parks Legacy Fund in 2019. “Friends of…” groups, community groups, incorporated charities, not-for-profit organizations, businesses, and informal groups or organizations are eligible to apply to the City’s Parks Legacy Fund for community projects in City parks.