Festa Italiana has received a financial boost from the Timmins Economic Development Corporation (TEDC).
During the Porcupine Dante Club's street festival celebration on Sunday, TEDC representatives presented Chris Loreto, an executive member of the Dante Club, with a $5,000 check that will be used to offset the cost of the Festa Italiana events.
“We had a number of people staying from out of town, so we were able to apply for that funding, which really helped with the costs,” said Loreto. “You need sponsorship for this to work and it worked out amazingly.”
The cash is collected through a four-per-cent charge on hotels, motels and other short-term accommodations. Half of what's collected is redistributed into the community for tourism activities.
The city partnered with the TEDC to be the not-for-profit entity to reinvest the cash. The other half of the money goes to city coffers. Council has the final decision on how that portion is spent.
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Loreto said that recognizing this contribution made sense at the Festa Italiana celebration.
“Let’s give credit where credit is due, and give credit to TEDC because they’ve always been a big part of our plans,” he said. “I want people to see that those tax dollars are really helping out because without that, it doesn’t happen.”
The Porcupine Dante Club also received funding for their event space renovations, including the Salute Lounge which had its grand opening on Saturday, from both Newmont Gold and the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corp. (NOHFC) program.
The street party was held on Cedar Street in front of the Dante Club and featured a car show, which Loreto said drew a lot of out-of-towners in for the event as well.
“People came from all over,” he said. “It made the weekend complete and it brought people out.”
Loreto said that support from programs like the MAT cash is a necessity when putting on events like Festa Italiana.
“It makes a huge difference,” he said. “We wanted everyone to see how the city helps out.”
