Canada Day in Kitchener and Waterloo: celebrations, fireworks safety and facility closures

Canada Day in Kitchener & Waterloo: celebrations, fireworks safety and facility closures

Kitchener, Ontario – The City of Kitchener wants you to stay safe and have fun this Canada Day. Join us in downtown Kitchener on Friday, July 1 for free concerts and fireworks. Enjoy a block party with performances by The Free Label and Ramsay Almighty on Gaukel Street from 3 to 6 p.m. Rufus John, Bad Child, Alyssa Reid, and headliner Glass Tiger, will perform on the main stage in Carl Zehr Square from 6 to 10:30 p.m. The evening will end with a beautiful fireworks display, around 10:20 p.m., weather permitting. For more information, visit www.Kitchener.ca/CanadaDay. To find more City of Kitchener events taking place this summer, visit www.kitchenerevents.ca.

This holiday weekend, residents are encouraged to keep safety top of mind and exercise caution with private backyard fireworks displays. Under the City of Kitchener Municipal Code, fireworks can only be set off on privately owned property, provided residents are able to meet the setback requirements, on Victoria Day, Canada Day and Diwali, and the day immediately before and after these holidays. Fireworks are not permitted to be set off on any City-owned lands, parks or schoolyards. Fireworks cannot be sold to anyone under the age of 18.

Questions about fireworks can be directed to the Kitchener Fire Department at 519-741-2496 or the corporate contact centre at 519-741-2345. In the event of an emergency or dangerous situation, always call 911. For more information on fireworks safety, visit?www.kitchener.ca/fireworkssafety.

Some city facilities will be closed or open modified hours this holiday weekend:

FACILITY CLOSURES
Offices at Kitchener City Hall will be closed on July 1, for the Canada Day public holiday. Services normally offered by staff will be available again on Monday, July 4 at 8:30 a.m.

KITCHENER MARKET
The market will be closed Friday, July 1. It will be open for regular business hours on Saturday, July 2.

KITCHENER PUBLIC LIBRARY
All Kitchener Public Library locations will be closed on Friday, July 1. Regular hours resume on Saturday, July 2.

POOLS
Lyle Hallman Pool, Forest Heights Pool, Breithaupt Centre, and Cameron Heights Pool will be closed on Friday, July 1. Harry Class Pool, Wilson Pool, and Kiwanis Pool will be open during regular operating hours, while Idlewood Pool will be open from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.

SPLASHPADS
City splash pads will remain open throughout the weekend.

COMMUNITY CENTRES
All community centres will be closed on Friday, July 1 for Canada Day.

THE AUD AND ARENAS
The community arenas including the Lyle S Hallman walking track will be closed on July 1. The Aud will be open for scheduled rentals.

KIWANIS PARK AND BUDD PARK
Kiwanis Park will be open for regularly scheduled programs on Friday, July 1.

Budd Park will be open for scheduled rentals on Friday, July 1.

Waterloo Canada Day Celebrations

About the July 1st Community Picnic

Spend the afternoon in Waterloo Park with local artists, food trucks and giant games at the July 1 Community Picnic. Event runs 4:00 p.m. to 10:30 p.m. on the West side of Waterloo Park located near the Bandshell.

Find out more about Canada Day and how we celebrate our community in an inclusive way that is mindful of Canada's history on our Indigenous Reconciliation web page.

Main Stage Schedule

Bring a blanket or chair and enjoy the local music stage at the Waterloo Park bandshell.

• 4:00 p.m. Opening remarks from Councillor Bodaly (Ward 2)
• 4:10 p.m. Clarissa Diokno feat. Jonas
  • Clarissa Diokno is a Singer-Songwriter based in Kitchener who has a smooth, yet raw and soulful vocal style. She writes songs about experiences in her life and also takes inspiration from TV, film, and others' life experiences. She will be accompanied by Jonas Pearson Paavola on guitar, who is a professional musician and music teacher.
• 5:15 P.M. Bashar Lulu Jabbour
• 5:30 P.M. Timaj Garad
• 6:00 P.M. Sam Nabi
• Sam Nabi is a hip-hop artist and community builder based in Kitchener. He runs TriCityHipHop.com, a map of places past and present that have influenced the region’s hip-hop culture. Sam performs lyrically-dense boombap for your head and your heart.
• Transstar builds bold beats and sings twisted pop.
• Waterloo Singer Songwriter, JP SUNGA, performing a mix of original music and cover songs. With Matt Koebel on guitar/piano.
• 6:40 P.M. Transstar
• 7:20 P.M. JP Sunga
• 8:40 Hyness
• 9:30 Elaquent, Prolific Hip Hop Producer.
• 10:00 LED drone show

*times subject to change

All Day Programming

Running from 4:00 P.M. to 10:00 P.M.

• #HopeAndHealingCanada by Tracey-Mae Chambers
  • #HopeAndHealingCanada is a series of site specific art installations created with red yarn. Métis Artist Tracey-Mae Chambers uses large knit and crochet pieces to illustrate connection between people and their environment. The artist also uses the work to promote dialogue questioning the connection between Indigenous, Inuit and Métis peoples and settlers. Decolonizing public spaces is always on the mind of the artist as she creates across Canada.
  • This installation can be found in Waterloo Parks West side near the picnic shelter.

• Food trucks: Pabla's Street Food of India, Northern Comfort Biscuits, The Funnel Cloud, Pierogi Pigs, and The Crumby Cookie Dough Company.

• Giant games and activities
• Art Market featuring local artists and makers (running until 9:00 P.M.)
• Sit and stay warm around the (propane) campfire

How To Get Here and Parking Info

Please note, the entrance to the West Side of Waterloo Park (off of Westmount Rd.) will be closed to vehicles for the event. Attendees are encouraged to find other methods of transportation or park in one of the nearby lots.

Need help finding parking? Check our parking map.