The Downtown Windsor Business Improvement Association (BIA) has completed the installation of approximately $200,000 worth of spherical, colour-changing decorative lights along Ouellette Avenue, stretching from the riverfront to Elliott Street. The project aims to enhance the vibrancy and safety of the downtown core.
Community and Business Response
Ward 3 Coun. Renaldo Agostino praised the installation, calling it “incredible.” He told the Windsor Star, “The business owners love it, the residents love it, and people who go downtown love it. My vision for downtown is to make it the most vibrant neighbourhood in the country. This is what vibrancy is all about. It’s not a seasonal thing. It’s always going to be there.”
The lights recently displayed red and white colours ahead of the World Cup match between Canada and Morocco, demonstrating their versatility for community events.
Expansion to Pelissier Street
The downtown BIA is now wrapping trees on Pelissier Street with smaller string lights, a project that will extend from Chatham Street West to Wyandotte Street West. This effort is part of a broader strategy to create distinct “districts” within downtown Windsor, each with its own flags and lighting themes.
Chris MacLeod, chair of the downtown BIA, explained, “Pelissier is getting that classy, small twinkle-light tree execution, which will give it a much different feel from Ouellette. We want to make sure that, beyond the flags, each of these districts has an identity.”
District Identity and Safety
So far, the BIA has announced two districts: a “market district” along Pelissier, home to the Saturday morning farmers’ market, and an “innovation district” on Pitt, Ferry, and Chatham Streets, focused on technology, entrepreneurship, and talent-based businesses. MacLeod noted that the added lighting has contributed to a greater sense of safety, attracting more visitors. “The evidence is there — just come downtown on Thursday, Friday, or Saturday night, and see what’s going on in front of places like Ariius Nightclub and Disco Inferno. There are people lined up to get in. Part of that is that people feel safe coming downtown,” he said.
