Northgate Square marks Silver Anniversary

25 years ago the phenomena ‘Pac Man’ the videogame was introduced to the world, while locally North Bay saw the birth of what was to become a huge regional shopping attraction.

Today the Northgate Square Shopping Centre has become more than just a place to shop says General Manager, Phil Richardson, Northgate is the heart of the community.

The centre which was originally established as a plaza in 1963 marked its true milestone October of 1980 when the plaza saw shopping moved from the unpredictable great outdoors to the comforts of a climate controlled mall.

“It enabled us then to bring a whole lot of retailers who need to have that kind of environment to locate in to our community, so that was a big first step. We were able to bring a lot people in who otherwise couldn’t come to North Bay and as a result they did come and saw a really great location,” states Richardson.

Richardson also said that the Square means so many different things to so many people that it really has relevance in the Blue Sky Region and beyond.

To launch the celebrations Richardson and staff unveiled the newly appointed Community Room. The room is on the second floor in the centre and is open to community groups for meetings and events free of charge.

“The Community Room is probably the true heart of the shopping centre because it really speaks to that fullness of purpose in so many different ways for people.”

Part of the festivities did see two old friends Richardson and Mayor Vic Fedeli do battle once again at the Pac Man Table.