Fort Erie flags offered as town pride fueled by amalgamation debate

A white flag bearing the Town of Fort Erie crest could soon appear on homes across town after Dan Turner launched a community effort to distribute 100 municipal flags to residents.

Turner told Fort Erie Radio he will pay roughly $2,000 out of pocket to produce and distribute the full-size Fort Erie flags as public debate continues over possible municipal amalgamation in Niagara.

The initiative arrives as Niagara’s regional government begins a formal review of how the region and its 12 municipalities are structured.

Regional council voted February 26 to launch a governance and service delivery review after debate over proposals that previously included merging municipalities or reducing the size of regional council.

After significant resistance, Regional Chair Bob Gale abandonded his original proposal for full amalgamation to the province.

Turner said the idea arose after hearing concerns about how amalgamation might affect the town’s sense of place. He expects the first batch of flags to arrive around early April if orders proceed as planned.

“A lot of people are anxious about what these talks look like, with people fearing that they’re going to lose their community spirit,” said Turner.

Turner calculated printing and shipping at just under $20 per flag, bringing the total cost for 100 flags to about $2,000.

The initiative operates independently of the municipality. Turner contacted several councillors to gauge interest and also emailed the town’s communications department but had not received a reply at the time of the interview.

“I want to be careful, too. I’m not selling these. It’s not a commercial venture in any way,” he said.

Turner created a Google Form for people to express interest in receiving a flag once they arrive. The form mentions an optional $20 contribution would be appreciated and intended only to offset production and shipping costs.

Roughly a dozen people had already expressed interest when Turner spoke with Fort Erie Radio. He expects additional orders could follow if demand exceeds the initial 100 flags.

Turner drew inspiration from a similar initiative in Niagara-on-the-Lake during the COVID-19 pandemic, when a community member arranged for local flags to be printed and distributed around Canada Day in 2020.

“It was a really cool silver lining that came out of COVID,” he said. “It really allowed people to show pride and have a really positive impact.”

Turner framed the flag initiative as a visible expression of local identity regardless of how the Niagara governance debate unfolds.

“Whether or not the province amalgamates Fort Erie, I thought it’d be really cool for us to be able to show our town spirit,” he said.

Turner said any money collected beyond production costs would go to a local charity.

He expects to finalize the order soon and contact participants once the flags arrive, with pickup anticipated in early April.

Residents interested in receiving a flag can register through the online form while the first 100 remain available.

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