A MESSAGE FROM RICHARD STEPHENS,
REEVE OF CENTRAL MANITOULIN

Welcome to our web site for the Municipality of Central Manitoulin.  We would really appreciate having you come and visit us in person.  Please take some time to look through this web site at the attractions and learn about all the opportunities that exist within our borders.

Central Manitoulin has several things that we can boast about.  Now the second largest municipality on Manitoulin, we are growing faster than any of our neighbours.  We have five hamlets that lie within a 20 km radius of Mindemoya, the hub of the municipality.  Within the boundaries of Central Manitoulin lie all three of the largest inland lakes on the Island – Kagawong, Mindemoya and Manitou.  We are also blessed with many miles of sandy beaches and beautiful shoreline on Lake Huron.  The Mindemoya River, the Manitou River and the Blue Jay Creek all originate in our Municipality.

Economically we are thriving as well.  We are a social and health services destination point here at the centre of the Island.  We have a fully-equipped hospital with six doctors and a nurse practitioner, two veterinarian clinics, a dentists’ office, a fully-staffed public health office and a private nursing service.  Mindemoya is home to an emergency shelter, a public child care service, a family resource centre and a residential program for developmentally challenged adults.

People from across the Island come to Central Manitoulin for professional accounting, legal and financial services.  Plumbers, electricians, building contractors, welders, stone masons and many other trades practice in our municipality.  The public school is located centrally in Mindemoya, with the high school a 10 minute bus ride away. We have a thriving retail sector and a plethora of recreational and cultural programs.  Some of the best restaurants that Manitoulin has to offer are here in our municipality.  We now boast of having two of the three pubs on the Island. Our golf course overlooking Lake Mindemoya is arguably the most picturesque of the three courses on Manitoulin.

Agriculture, although not the engine of the economy of Manitoulin Island that it used to be, still plays a significant role.  We have some of the most productive lands on the Island and a number of dairy and beef farms that make a valuable contribution to our local economy.  Also, lining miles of these farms and all around are picturesque snake rail fences of the late 1800’s.

In short, there are many tangible reasons to come to Central Manitoulin.  The intangibles are even more compelling. Our small villages have a strong sense of community that readily expands to encompass newcomers who share in our love of the island way-of-life.  Although the slower pace may not be suited to all, we believe that the beauty of our natural surroundings and the many recreational opportunities it offers a much happier and healthier environment than fast food outlets and shopping malls.  We feel safe leaving our doors unlocked and we don’t hesitate to walk alone at night, especially since it gives us a chance to admire the beautiful night sky, undiminished by light pollution.

Please come and check out Central Manitoulin for yourself.  You may find, as one retiree who moved here has said, “You come for the nature, you stay for the people.”