The changing face of Main Street

Huntsville’s Main Street is a vibrant part of our town, attracting visitors with its charming shops, fun events, and beautiful waterfront. Some new downtown shops and festivals will be welcome additions this year, including a new street-level location for Up North Games, a new Italian Café, Gelateria and Market behind That Little Place by the Lights, a new location for Whimsical Bakery, a spring Maple Festival, and a May beer festival.

There is also hope that the old A&P building will finally get a facelift, that the conditional sale of the Empire lot will eventually lead to a promising new development, and that River Mill Park’s parking issues will be resolved.

The downtown community is excited for the two new festivals arriving this spring, said Helena Renwick, Huntsville BIA’s Executive Director. The inaugural Muskoka Maple Festival on April 23 is the culmination of the six-week long Muskoka Maple Trail and will include an all-day pancake breakfast, a maple marketplace, fiddle music, chainsaw carving, arts and crafts, and a family-friendly activity zone. The Muskoka 24 Beer Festival on May 21 will feature craft brewers and will coincide with the first performance on River Mill Park’s new bandshell.

Could a new development soon be a reality for the old Empire lot?

The new Italian Café, Gelateria and Market behind That Little Place by the Lights will be open in time for the festivities. “We’re planning to open sometime in April,” said Manny Buttus. “In the area closest to the river we’ll have a café with coffee and quick sandwiches to go and 12 or so flavours of gelato. And in the back we’ll have a market with Italian products like olive oils, balsamic vinegars, meats, cheeses and lasagnas.”

That Little Place by the Lights will be opening a new café, gelateria and market facing River Mill Park.

Christine Kropp, owner of Whimsical Bakery, also plans to be open in time for the Muskoka Maple Festival. “We’ll be full of maple products for that week,” she said.

The bakery has done custom orders since 2008 but the new location on the northeast corner of Brunel and High Street will be its first storefront. “We’ll be ‘the sweetest spot in Muskoka,’” said Kropp, quoting the store’s tagline. “We’ll have 10 seats for people who want to stay but most of our products will be grab and go. We’ll also stay open later in the evenings so people leaving the theatre or out enjoying downtown will have a place to go.” Kropp describes the bakery’s style as American with a focus on treats like cupcakes, cookies, whoopee pies, ice cream, sundaes, and floats. She’s in the process of hiring new staff to man the store. The bakery’s two full-time bakers will continue custom orders for birthday cakes, wedding cakes and dessert catering from their offsite commercial kitchen.

Up North Games isn’t new to Main Street, but the street-level location it recently moved in to is larger more visible than its previous one. “We hold tournaments here and it’s not fun when you have 24 people in a space the size of a bedroom,” explained owner Ryan Farnsworth. “The new store has more space and more gaming area. We are a specialty store and people seek us out, but we’re also adding more casual games so that it will appeal to people walking by, too”

The store will continue to host Magic: The Gathering tournaments. “Magic is a strategic card game,” said Farnsworth. “People compare it to poker mixed with chess, and it lends itself to tournament-style play. There’s a winner and loser every time.” The store has sample decks so that interested players can learn – creators of the game release a new deck every three months – and Monday night casual events when anyone can come out to play. Tuesday, Friday and Saturday nights are for more advanced players.

Farnsworth also plans to host board game tournaments, likely with games like Catan and Ticket to Ride, and offers Thursday Table Top Nights when anyone can stop in to play games in the store’s library for free.

“Many of our downtown businesses are locally owned and operated and that makes for a strong business community,” said Renwick. “They care about our downtown.”

In addition to the two new festivals, the BIA plans to host another Canada Day celebration on Main Street, and is welcoming the Urban Slide – a 1000-foot slip n’ slide that will run down Main Street from Centre to Brunel on August 27.

Renwick said a new Group of Seven community mural will once again be available for passersby to add their strokes. “Art, music and food make for a vibrant core and we have all of those.”