Report to: Economic Development Committee                 Date
of Meeting: September 19, 2006

SUBJECT:                          Maple
Leaf Dragon Boat

PREPARED BY:               Stephen Chait, Director, Economic
Development x.4871

Sara
Tam, Manager, Business Planning & Innovation x.7533

RECOMMENDATION:

That the report entitled “Maple
Leaf Dragon Boat” be received;

AND THAT the Mayor be authorized
by Council to send a letter of thanks to Mr. Willy Tong for his offer to loan
his Maple Leaf Dragon Boat to the Town at no charge for use at special
community and economic development events;

AND THAT an annual calendar of
events at which the Maple Leaf Dragon Boat could be featured be drafted by
Corporate Communications in consultation with event staff from all Town
Commissions and with input from members of Council;

AND THAT the proposed calendar of
events be presented to Council along with any related estimated costs, prior to
the Town making use of the Maple Leaf Dragon Boat.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:

Not applicable

FINANCIAL CONSIDERATIONS:

Not applicable at this time. The
financial implications to the Town of making use of the Maple Leaf Dragon Boat
will be addressed as part of the recommended preparation of a calendar of
events at which the Maple Leaf Dragon Boat would be featured.

1.
Purpose                2. Background         3. Discussion             4.
Financial         5. Environmental

6. Accessibility       7. Engage 21st             8. Affected Units       9. Attachment(s)

PURPOSE:

To advise Council of the offer by
Mr. Willie Tong to loan the Town his Maple Leaf Dragon Boat at no charge, and
prior to making use of the Dragon Boat to propose a course of action in order
to identify the potential occasions at which the Town might make use of the
Maple Leaf Dragon Boat, as well as to quantify any related costs to the Town
that the use of the Dragon Boat may generate.

BACKGROUND:

On August 30, 2006 Mr. Willie Tong and his son
Joseph Tong met with Mayor Cousens for the purpose of informing the Mayor of
their proposal to offer the Town of Markham the free use of a Maple Leaf Dragon
Boat, and to invite the Town to make use of the Dragon Boat as a symbol and
tool for promoting Canadian multiculturalism, teamwork, and international
relations.

OPTIONS/ DISCUSSION:

Mr. Willy Tong is the founder of
the Canada Maple Leaf Dragon Multicultural Society. Originally from Hong Kong, Mr. Tong and his family immigrated to Canada 14 years
ago. An inventor, Mr. Tong has dedicated himself to promoting multiculturalism
and team work. In 1995, he established the Canada Maple Leaf Dragon
Multicultural Society and has been an active participant in many community
activities, especially the celebration of Canada Day and Canadian democracy. He
has specifically focused on promoting the popular use of dragon boats for this
purpose. His boats are intended to be symbols of the “Queen’s
royalty” (2006 is the Queen’s 80th birthday), and of
Chinese culture.

Mr. Tong and his Canada Maple Leaf
Dragon Multicultural Society intend to use his two boats in the following ways:

To
promote nation-building in Canada
(people from all 10 provinces and 3 territories could be accommodated in a
single boat);

To
promote team work and multiculturalism (at dragon boat competitions);

To
promote “exchange through culture and sports, and to promote
technology and trade” (IBM and ATI Technologies are already active
in dragon boat racing, and United Way fundraising);

To
use one boat as a “Wishing Boat” for use at cultural and
educational events (students and community members can be encouraged to
share their wishes, visions, and ideas for benefiting Canadian society);

To
better connect and inspire Canada-China relations by displaying
“wishing boats” and dragon boat programs in Markham and in similar communities in China.

The Maple Leaf Dragon Boat is a
concept to be used as a racing boat or as a ceremonial boat. Mr. Tong owns two
boats (both of which he offers to loan to the Town at no cost), one a modified
dragon boat for racing, and the other boat is a more decorated version to be
used only on land for ceremonial purposes. Both boats can accommodate 26
paddlers plus a drummer/bagpiper and a helmsman/woman. Both boats are 40 feet
long and 2 feet high. The racing boat is built to Canadian standards (40 inches
wide).

The ceremonial boat (for use on
land only) is already built (valued at $3,000) and is available for use at any
time. The racing boat (value $18,000) is now under construction and is
anticipated to be ready for use by early in October. Both boats will be loaned
on a scheduled basis to the Town with personal flotation devices, paddles, and
appropriate decorations.

Mr. Tong intends to retain
ownership of the boats. He is offering to loan them to the Town on a scheduled
basis as long as the Town includes the Canada Maple Leaf Dragon Multicultural
Society in the event and publicly acknowledges the Society’s initiative
in loaning the boat(s). The Town may choose to use the boat(s) in events hosted
by other organizations, but must include the Canada Maple Leaf Dragon
Multicultural Society in all events where the boat(s) is displayed. Whenever
the Town of Markham
makes use of the boat(s), Mr. Tong encourages the Town to display written
information about the objectives and purposes for which the boat(s) were built
and are being used, as well as crediting the Canada Maple Leaf Dragon
Multicultural Society for initiating this program.

The free availability of two
dragon boats for use in economic development and cultural programming presents
potential advantages for Markham.
The diversity of the Town’s population, its celebration of
multiculturalism, and its growing status as a community of choice for leading
Chinese municipalities and off-shore organizations to establish preferred
economic relations with, are all examples of the potential benefits of having
access to these boats. In addition there may be other opportunities for the
Town to use these boats in the context of a variety of other events, as well as
possibly access new ways to promote Markham
in venues for which a dragon boat could be a key to entry.

It is therefore recommended that
the Town identify a calendar of events at which the Town might make use of the
Maple Leaf Dragon Boat(s), as well as to quantify any related costs to the Town
that the use of the Dragon Boat(s) may generate. These potential costs may
include occasional transport and storage of the boat(s), insurance costs and event
registration.

FINANCIAL TEMPLATE (Separate Attachment):

Not applicable

ENVIRONMENTAL CONSIDERATIONS:

Not applicable

ACCESSIBILITY CONSIDERATIONS:

Not applicable

ENGAGE 21ST CONSIDERATIONS:

This initiative is an example of
ways in which the Town can celebrate cultural diversity and inspire
volunteerism and good character development.

BUSINESS UNITS CONSULTED AND AFFECTED:

Staff in the Community Services
Commission, Development Services Commission, Corporate Communications and Legal
Department have been consulted in the drafting of this report.

RECOMMENDED

BY:    ________________________          ________________________

Stephen
Chait                                     Jim
Baird

Director,
Economic Development        Commissioner,
Development

Services

ATTACHMENTS:

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