Amalgamation 50 Years Onwards: A Short Retrospective

Thunder Bay in 2020 is celebrating its 50^th anniversary this year as one city.  Amalgamation united the twin cities of Port Arthur and Fort William and the adjacent townships of Neebing and McIntyre.  While there was much community support for a union particularly among the city elites who wanted to see the inter city area developed, in the end resistance was such that it was the provincial government that essentially merged the cities into one.  While memories have faded as demographics evolve, it remains that a shotgun wedding is probably not the best way to build long-term enthusiasm for a major institutional change. 

The current celebrations appear to be somewhat muted all things considered given the economic and social issues that Thunder Bay has faced over the last decade.  There is also the current state of the municipal government finances which obviously limits the scope of any project to commemorate the anniversary.  A 50th anniversary celebration should see the unveiling of a major public square celebrating unity with commemorative sculptures or columns but given our current age of divisiveness deciding what actually to commemorate will be a non-starter.  Moreover, 50 years is not even that long a time in the course of human events, especially given that urban centres at the Lakehead were in existence for nearly a century prior to amalgamation.

Port Arthur was incorporated as a town in 1884 and achieved status as a city in 1906 while Fort William was incorporated as a town in 1892 and achieved city status in 1907.  The two cities had down towns that were only four miles apart and yet they were notorious rivals when it came to attracting industry or a government project not to mention with respect to sporting events.  While this rivalry and lack of cooperation may have been in some respects counterproductive, it nevertheless was a source of competitive pressure that probably assisted economic growth and urban achievement.   

Amalgamation instituted a monopoly municipal government at the Lakehead and the lack of competition and as a result reduced policy experimentation after 1970 was likely another factor in the growth slowdown since.  Amalgamation also attempted to bury the existing urban identities - the area was widely known nationally and globally as "The Lakehead" - with “ThunderBayification” in attempts to rename things and in the short run robbed the community of a sense of identity, history and ultimately the celebration of urban centennials in 2006-07 marking the 100^th anniversary of the Lakehead cities.  

 

Denying the past was also a factor for the delay in the city coming together as one and was reinforced by the balance of power approach to the new council which provided equal representation for both sides.  As a result, the duplication of city services that amalgamation was supposed to eliminate continued with north and south downtown urban renewal projects as well as north and south side waterfront parks.  Over time, there has finally come a realization that both urban areas could have unique roles with the north side becoming an entertainment/tourism area and the south side the seat of government functions including the city hall.  Amsterdam and The Hague on Lake Superior so to speak.  Yet, this process has taken so long that in the end both former downtown Fort William and Port Arthur have become less than they could have been given the expansion of the inter city area as a magnet for so much office and retail development.

Still, amalgamation had its benefits.  The city now has several good north-south road traffic routes as well as an integrated public transit system and more and better municipal services and facilities but they have not come any cheaper.  Indeed, the city has expanded away from its former compacted core areas with an urban sprawl that is increasingly higher cost in terms of required services.  Coming together as one city has also  seen the long-term development of cultural and community infrastructure with the auditorium and the planned new waterfront art gallery the best examples of this. 

And being one unified location has helped in the integration of health care facilities which culminated in the building of the new centrally located hospital and improved health services for the city and region.  Residents with longer memories have even been treated to the amusing spectacle of the former south downtown Fort William Clinic moving to Port Arthur to be part of a cluster of medical facilities.  Yet, even the new hospital and centralization of health care services was a mixed blessing given it was undersized from day one in terms of bed capacity and that in the age of SARS and corona-virus, a remote city with two separate acute care hospitals rather than only one could have some benefits. 

However, in terms of economic growth, population has been at a standstill since the 1970s and the loss of the industrial base has essentially resulted in the city’s economy becoming a ward of the state with over 30 percent of its employment in government and quasi-public sector activities.  The main challenge for the next 50 years is not how to improve or expand Thunder Bay’s public services at the provincial, federal and municipal levels, but to make Thunder Bay more competitive as a location for economic development of private sector wealth generating activities. 

 

A Unity Circle: Celebrating Thunder Bay

The new Thunder Bay City Council that will be elected in October of 2018 will have a number of economic and social challenges on its plate but there is one item that should be a source for celebration.  The year 2020 will mark the 50^th year of the amalgamation of the twin cities of Port Arthur and Fort William and the rural townships of Neebing and McIntyre to form Thunder Bay.  The urban history of the Lakehead communities actually goes back to the late nineteenth century and both Port Arthur and Fort William obtained city status in the first decade of the twentieth century as the great boom drove their urban growth and development. 

I always thought it was somewhat of a shame that not more effort was made to celebrate the centennials of the twin cities circa 2006-07 but I suspect the history of urban rivalry between the two cities was such that no one really wanted to deal with it.  However, we now have an opportunity to celebrate amalgamation and I think it should go beyond simply a number of commemorative events and the publication of self-congratulatory histories.  I think an effort should be made to leave behind something concrete that adds to the city’s environment and is a legacy for the future.

As a result of its urban history of being two separate cities, Thunder Bay has always lacked a more centrally located focal point that could serve as a gathering place for the public to celebrate events.  Many cities around the world often have public squares or sites that can serve as gathering points for celebrations and events and that act as emblems for the city.  Think of Trafalgar Square in London, for example or Washington Square or Times Square in New York or the iconic four columns in Barcelona.

We of course cannot reproduce these types of landmarks nor should we but I think as a city we can take the step of creating a public space that celebrates the creation of Thunder Bay as well as points the way to a future that includes all its residents.  Somewhere in the Intercity area, preferably close to the banks of the McIntyre River – the old boundary between Port Arthur and Fort William – we should consider putting into place what I would like to call Unity Circle.  It would be a celebration of amalgamation and the bringing together of the twin cities to form Thunder Bay and would also look towards the future by including First Nations. 

Unity Circle would be a public space in the Intercity area that would contain a number of columns - I suggest six large columns of identical height arranged in a circle with the columns representing the original four municipalities that came together to form Thunder Bay, the City of Thunder Bay and Fort William First Nation. At the center of Unity Circle there would be a flame that would burn perpetually.  I think a message of unity is very important given the many social challenges that have faced Thunder Bay over the last decade and may help represent a way of moving forward into the future.

So, it is just an idea.  The actual piece of land and location is of course one of those details best left to the politicians and administrators and community leaders who make these decisions.  The design of the space and a suitable set of commemorative structures is also of course up for discussion and debate. What is most important right now is the concept.  The concept of a Unity Circle is something that celebrates our history and looks forwards by leaving the legacy of a substantial central public space that could form the focus of future public community events.  I think it is worth consideration.