Man with big head, red pants plans to move (update)

Mr. Bon Soo is on the move.

Bon Soo organizers plan to relocate the annual winter carnival to the Mill Market property this year in a move that is expected to make way for an expanded list of activities and better accessibility.

“For 52 years we’ve been with the city, we’ve been on a city site and every summer we spend time talking about what we would like to do, what we can do, what physically fits,” said Kerrie De Poli, manager of Ontario Winter Carnival Bon Soo. “We loved the (Bondar) Pavilion, but geographically, it is just too small.”

Bon Soo will move to the current temporary winter carnival site this year with plans to shift to Mill Square on the former St. Marys Paper property when the market moves, said De Poli.

Bringing Bon Soo to the Canal District fits with ongoing efforts to revitalize that part of the city, said Justus Veldman, CEO of Riversedge Developments.

He said bringing Bon Soo to the Mill Square site gives festival-goers access to nearby Parks Canada offerings and Whitefish Island as well.

"It's really to drive traffic and creative and events and fun to the Canal District," said Veldman.

The winter carnival has held its events at Bellevue Park, which offers “almost infinite” space, but found that site to have accessibility issues, said De Poli.

While the move back downtown was well received by the public, accessibility issues at that site were “very real.”

De Poli said the new site will be better for people with disabilities and offers more space than the pavilion.

“(Mill Square Inc.) has been phenomenal. We’re so excited. It’s great for us because, like us, they have a history behind them but they’re also looking in a new direction,” said De Poli.

Veldman said agreements in principal have been worked out with OLG Casino Sault Ste. Marie and Station Mall to provide parking.

The former St. Marys Paper parking lots will also be available.

The Feb. 6-15 carnival will include all the usual events - bum slides, alpacas, etc. - and likely a few more, though De Poli said organizers are still poring over a long list of possible additions.