Maple Leaf Village

Maple Leaf Village

Coordinates: 43°05′30″N 79°04′20″W / 43.091668°N 79.072165°W / 43.091668; -79.072165

Maple Leaf Village is a former amusement park and entertainment complex in Niagara Falls, Ontario. Opened in May 1979 it was operated by Conklin Shows (operators of the midway at the Toronto Canadian National Exhibition). Falling on hard economic times in the early 1990s, it was restructured and replaced with Casino Niagara, a government run casino.

Contents

Site history

In the early 1900s, the land was host to Frontier Amusement Park, which boasted one of Canada's first all-steel roller coasters. By 1910, the amusement park was abandoned and dismantled.

By the 1940s, the Oneida Community Plate Corporation Ltd. constructed their local corporate offices here. Known today for their manufacture of fine silverware, it was decided in the 1960s to construct an observation tower to afford visitors a view of the Niagara cataracts from the north side (the Seagram Tower [now the Konica Minolta Tower] had been constructed in 1962 and afforded a view from the south side). Billed as the area's first open-steel observation tower, it was opened for business by the 1964 tourist season.

Tower becomes amusement park

When Oneida relocated their offices in the late 1970s, York Hannover Developments Ltd. and Wost Holdings Ltd. invested $26 million in the creation of an amusement park concept, after the site was cleared. Its initial annual payroll was $3 million. The park pre-dated by two years the opening of Canada's Wonderland, presumed at that point to cost $105 million when completed.[1]

The three-storey complex of Maple Leaf Village was constructed around the tower. It boasted a multi-screen movie theatre, numerous attractions (through the years: That's Incredible! museum and the Elvis Presley Museum were here), countless souvenir and apparel stores, Lillie Langtry's tavern and club and, in later years, the first locale for the Canadian comedy cabaret, Yuk-Yuk's. On the North side of the property was a complete carnival midway, complete with "North America's Largest" Ferris wheel which, along with the tower (now called the Kodak Tower) dominating the northern tourist skyline. As part of the Clifton Hill tourist area, the facility was well-received and attracted numerous crowds for years.

Eventually, however, the novelty began to wear thin as shops folded and main tenants relocated to other locations with more suitable infrastructure. Admission costs to the Kodak Tower were eliminated for a few years, until unsafe conditions closed the tower altogether in the early 1990s. At the end of the 1992 season, the amusement park closed down. In early spring of 1993 the Ferris wheel was dismantled and shipped to Asia for use there.

By January 1994, only a dozen shops remained in operation throughout the sprawling three-storey structure. Redevelopment of the property was necessary, as many more shops were preferring on-street access in the burgeoning tourist area. The Maple Leaf Village Mall closed for the last time on Feb 1st 1995.

Casino Niagara opened in the building on December 7, 1996; it is still in operation today. The site was intended to be a temporary site, but the new site was filled by the Niagara Fallsview Casino Resort. The tower received a new look to reflect its more upscale surroundings, although there currently is no public access.

See also

References

External links


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем сделать НИР

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Maple Leaf, Toronto — Maple Leaf   Neighbourhood   Position of Maple Leaf Maple Leaf is a neighbourhood in the city of Toronto, Ontario …   Wikipedia

  • Maple Leaf, Seattle — Maple Leaf Maple Leaf is a mostly residential neighborhood in Seattle, originally a rural suburb (subdivided c. 1894) named Maple Leaf Addition to the Green Lake Tract or Green Lake Circle. The name may have come from the Maple Saw Mill that… …   Wikipedia

  • Maple Leaf Gardens — This article is about the arena. For the company formerly known as Maple Leaf Gardens Ltd., see Maple Leaf Sports Entertainment. Maple Leaf Gardens Location 60 Carlton Street, Toronto, Ontario, M …   Wikipedia

  • Maple Club — Colours: Black and white Founded: 1958 Home ground: Trent s BCA Division 1 wins: 1992 Maple Club is a multi sport club in Barbados. Maple s cricket team play in the Barbados Cricket Association Division 1 championship. Maple is based in… …   Wikipedia

  • Scarborough Village — Scarborough Heights, Markham Eglinton   Neighbourhood   Eglinton Avenue East at CN Railway tracks east of Bellamy Roa …   Wikipedia

  • Don Valley Village —   Neighbourhood   Large apartment towers are located on the major avenues in Don Valley Village …   Wikipedia

  • Davisville Village — For the community in the United States, see Davisville, West Virginia. Davisville   Neighbourhood   Skyline of Davisville Village, 2009 …   Wikipedia

  • Kingsview Village —   Neighbourhood   Towers in Kingsview …   Wikipedia

  • Casino Niagara — is a commercial casino located in Niagara Falls, Ontario Canada. It opened in 1996, on the site of the former Maple Leaf Village amusement park. It was originally an interim casino while the new Niagara Fallsview Casino Resort was constructed.… …   Wikipedia

  • Conklin Shows — Conklin Garrett Ltd. Type Privately held company Industry Amusement Midway Founded 1916 Headquarters Brantford, Ontario …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”