CORNER BROOK, N.L. — Improving Wi-Fi service and directional signage are part of a plan by the Corner Brook Port Corporation to make capacity, aesthetic and safety improvements for visiting cruise ships and passengers.
To help with those, and other improvements, the port has received $120,000 from the federal government.
The funding, through the Canadian Experiences Fund, was announced on Tuesday, Aug. 20, by Gudie Hutchings, Liberal MP for the Long Range Mountains, on behalf of Tourism Minister Mélanie Joy.
“This investment will help the Corner Brook Port Corporation to further develop their tourism products and experiences,” said Joy in a press release.
Jackie Chow, chief executive officer of the Corner Brook Port Corporation, said cruise ship visitation has grown at the port with record bookings in 2019 and 2020.
“We want to build on this success to deliver a product beyond our passenger expectations,” she said.
“We want to ensure our visitors can readily navigate to the downtown core, and have the opportunity to experience Corner Brook.”
As part of the improvements, the port plans to commission several artistic mobile backdrops and Chow said that at least one of them may be completed this season.
She said the port has not yet put out a call for proposals for the backdrops and will be looking for some very creative ideas.
The backdrops will provide an opportunity for visitors to post selfie shots with “Greetings from Corner Brook” that will further promote the destination.
The port would also like for the backdrops to be portable so that they can be used for other events taking place in the city.
She said the Wi-Fi upgrades are expected to be completely immediately.
The port will also be working on an improved covered market area for local vendors and temporary event shelters.
A limited dredging program will also be undertaken to improve the safety of the berth for large vessels. Some engineering work related to the dredging has been completed, but the actual work won’t happen this year.
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