Showcasing Labrador City

Nick McGrath really wants to promote everything Labrador West has to offer.

In the Oct. 5 council meeting, Labrador City supported a joint funding application between the Labrador West Regatta and the Summer East, West, North Expo 2010 to help a local committee get federal funding for a project that would highlight opportunities in the area.

"This is a project we tried to get up and running last year, but we were too late out of the gate," McGrath, chair of the local expo committee, explained. "There is already an East meets West Expo between Mount Pearl and Corner Brook and they're looking for a Labrador component, so Fabian Janes (project manager/consultant) had approached me and asked if I thought there was any opportunity to get Labrador West involved."

He thought it was a great idea, so he put together a presentation and approached the former Labrador City town council and while, he said, the councillors were interested in the project they had some concerns about pulling it off.

The committee, made up of various community groups including the Labrador West Chamber of Commerce, Hyron Regional Economic Development Corporation, the Department of Tourism, Culture and Recreation and the Town of Labrador City, considered holding a one-day expo last summer, but ultimately decided it would be better to wait until it could be done correctly.

"It will be a three-day expo (on July 30, July 31 and Aug. 1)," McGrath pointed out. "There will be three days in Mount Pearl, then it will move to Corner Brook for three days, and then it will move to Labrador City for three days."

McGrath said the expo won't take place over nine consecutive days - each community is planning it around summer events in their municipality, and the Labrador West Regatta will kick off the expo in Labrador City.

He explained the idea behind the expo is to bring the tourism and economic development sectors of the community together to showcase different tourism, culture, recreation and business opportunities in Labrador West.

"Throughout the three days there will be a Tent City set up," he noted. "Depending on the need it could be up to 12 tents, but we should have a minimum of six tents 40X40 and they'll be set up for demonstrations of local stakeholders. These stakeholders will have the opportunity over these three days to demonstrate what their businesses are all about."

McGrath added there will be daily entertainment as well - buskers, storytelling, an antique car show, an outdoor church service, for example - and there will be a laser show at the end of each day.

The laser show, he pointed out, will be similar to those at NHL hockey games or rock concerts, and in addition to showing off what's happening in Labrador West, the expo will provide locals and tourists with a three-day fun-filled summer event.

"It's a significant piece of work that comes with a big budget (over $250,000), and it will be free," he stated. "The only two things we will charge for in terms of entertainment would be the golf tournament and the shed party that will be taking place at the arena."

McGrath admitted any business or group that wants to showcase their organization will also have to pay a fee, but other than that, the committee is relying on federal, provincial and municipal funding, as well as corporate sponsorships to make the expo a reality.

He said he's already spoke to several companies who are interested in contributing to the event, and he expects the East meets West meets North Expo will put Labrador City on the map as a destination for tourism and economic development.

"We all know Labrador City is booming and with that we need to create the infrastructure to support it," he stated. "This is a great opportunity to highlight the opportunities that are there for the community."

The committee, McGrath said, really hopes to make the expo a pan-Labrador initiative - communities from all over the Big Land will be invited to attend to highlight the culture and diversity of the area - and given Labrador West's proximity to Quebec, several French communities will be asked to participate as well.

McGrath thinks the expo will be a resounding success and he noted the committee hopes it will become an annual event in Labrador City.

"I'm really, really excited about it," he said. "This is the full-meal deal. This is a golden opportunity to put Labrador City in a position to really promote everything that we have and it's also an invitation for so much more to come."