Our Team Boards and Committees

The SCDA team is made up of our staff and board. Staff members carry out all activities of the Association as dictated by the board and its committees, comprised of BIA member volunteers. Association staff is comprised:

Tisha Polocko, Executive Director

Carolyn Watson, Communications Coordinator

Our staff members are here to support and advocate for you and have a variety of responsibilities. The team hosts and organizes all meetings of the Association, manages and administers financial affairs, addresses member concerns and complaints, communicates parking, traffic, streetscaping and by-law issues and ideas from the membership to the City and/or region, issues a monthly online newsletter, initiates personal contacts, and maintains the membership database, responds to requests for information from the local community as well as tourist-oriented agencies and individuals, and works with community stakeholders. Contact our office at scda@mydowntown.ca or call 905-685-8424.

Communications Strategy

The St. Catharines Downtown Association has developed a Communications Strategy Policy. The purpose of this policy is to provide a clear expectation of how news and information is distributed to the business members of the St. Catharines Downtown Association. To view the St. Catharines Downtown Association’s Communications Strategy Policy, please click below:

Board and Committees

Board of Management

The board runs concurrently with City Council and nominations and elections of board members are done at the same time as the municipal elections, unless a board member has resigned and there is a vacant spot to fill in the interim. The current Board of Management for 2020:

• Stephen Bedford, Stephen Bedford Consulting (Executive Member)
• John Blanchard, Hughson Business Space Corporation (Executive Member)
• David Cooperman, Cooperman Real Estate Inc.
• Anita Couturier, Helen’s Delicatessen Ltd. (Executive Member)
• Joe Critelli, Critelli Fine Furniture
• Tracey Findlay, Niagara IceDogs Hockey Club
• Hondrea Hunt-Charbonneau, Grandma’s Basement
• Adam Hynam-Smith, Dispatch Restaurant
• Orhan Kerim, Erroll’s Shoe and Luggage Repair
• Robin McPherson, Janice and Robin Digital Communications (Board Chair)
• Mat Siscoe, City Council Representative

If you would like to reach a member of our Board of Management, or for general questions and concerns, please contact the St. Catharines Downtown Association office at scda@mydowntown.ca or call 905-685-8424.

Meetings

Board of Management Meetings

The St. Catharines Downtown Association is governed by a Board of Management approved by St. Catharines City Council for a four-year term, concurrent with the City of St. Catharines Councillors term of office. The Board of Management controls the Association’s activities and approves all policies.

The Board of Management meets a minimum of 10 times per year on a regular basis (monthly). Members of the public are welcome to attend. Please RSVP in advance to Tisha Polocko, Executive Director, phone 905-685-8424.

The next Board meeting is scheduled for Monday March 15, 2021 (time TBA) via Zoom conference call.

Join Zoom Meeting: TBA

If you wish to receive a copy of the minutes from the latest Board of Management meeting, please contact the office by email or call 905-685-8424, or you may view ratified minutes for 2020 below.

Annual General Meeting

The St. Catharines Downtown Association conducts an Annual General Meeting (AGM) each February. The financial statements of the previous year along with the current fiscal budget are reviewed and voted on by the Association membership present at the AGM.

The members of the St. Catharines Downtown Association, the designated Business Improvement Area (BIA), consist of persons who are assessed on the last returned assessment roll with respect to rateable property in the area that is in a prescribed business property class and tenants of such property.

The 48th Annual General Meeting took place on Tuesday, February 23, 2021 at 5:30pm via Zoom. Please visit the Event Listing for the AGM for more information.

The minutes from the 2021 Annual General Meeting will be posted to our website after March 15, 2021 after they are ratified at the next board meeting.

Committees

Promotions & Marketing Committee

Committee provides input about promotion and marketing of downtown in general and reviews the promotion of events and other marketing initiatives.

Next meeting: January 25, 2021 via Zoom. Please RSVP to Tisha by email or call 905-685-8424.

Summer Activations Sub-Committee

A sub-committee has been formed to plan downtown summer activations for 2021. The next meeting is being held via Zoom on Tuesday March 9, 2021 at 9:30 a.m.

Zoom link (to be provided)

Downtown Beautification Committee

The next meeting of the Downtown Beautification Committee is TBA. Please RSVP to Tisha by email or call 905-685-8424.

Safety Committee

Committee reviews downtown safety initiatives such as the Police Foot Patrol Program and plans ways to engage and assist the disadvantaged in our community. The next meeting of the Safety Committee is TBA.

New Entrepreneur/Business Committee

Committee offers guidance to new and emerging businesses by working with the St. Catharines Enterprise Centre and other resources. The next meeting is TBA. RSVP to Tisha by email or call 905-685-8424.

More About Member Resources