Thunder Bay has an uphill climb ahead of it if the city wants to pass Go, collect $200 and earn a spot on the board of Hasbro’s new Monopoly Canada edition.
The city is sitting in 53rd spot in the nationwide vote with a meager 0.7 per cent of the vote. Calgary leads the way at 4.5 per cent, followed closely by St. Jean-sur-Richilieu, Que. A total of 65 cities made the short list, with the top 20 slated to make the cut. An additional two cities will be added in the wild card portion of the vote, which is being conducted at www.monopolyvote.ca.
Thunder Bay Mayor Lynn Peterson said she thinks the contest is a great idea and that her office is fully on board.
"I have been voting and we are encouraging the community to get involved," Peterson said via email. "Wouldn’t it be great for every Monopoly board in Canada to have Thunder Bay on it."
The game has been a parlour staple since 1934, and requires players to move around the 40-space board, buying up and developing properties and paying rent to other owners. Peterson said she knows exactly where she’d like to see Thunder Bay placed if it makes the top 20.
"My preference would be where Boardwalk is," she said, referencing the most expensive property on the Monopoly Board, checking in at $400 to buy and costing penny-pinching visitors a whopping $2,000 to stay when a hotel has been erected. "It would be great for putting our name out there as the place to be."
City Tourism manager Paul Pepe, who helped lead the charge in 2007 when the Sleeping Giant was being considered for one of the Seven Wonders of Canada, called it a great opportunity to once again rally community support around the city and have Thunder Bay immortalized on one of the world’s most endearing games.
“Being a city so strategically located as a hinge in the centre of Canada and as one of the country’s best outdoor cities, it’s only logical that we have a spot on the game,” Pepe said. “We’d love city residents and visitors alike to cast their vote for Thunder Bay and for folks to share, via Facebook, Twitter and other social media, the link to get their friends involved.”
Voting began on Monday and concludes on Feb. 7. The wild card vote, which will see 10 communities vying for the final two spots, will take place from Feb. 8 to 2010.
The public is allowed to vote for up to three of the pre-chosen cities and nominate one wild card community per day. The leaderboard for the pre-chosen cities will be blocked from public view as of Jan. 29.
